Razor Blades Edge
by Shawn30
Summary: Post near the end of TLJ, then AU: After killing Supreme Leader Snoke, Kylo Ren offers Rey the First Order to rule at his side. But the legacy of the Skywalker bloodline steers their fate in a dangerous new direction. One that inevitably draws them ever closer to each other. Reylo!


**Title: "Razor Blades Edge"**  
 **Chapter 1/1**  
 **Written by: Shawn30**

 **Summary: After killing Supreme Leader Snoke, Kylo Ren offers Rey the First Order to rule at his side. But the legacy of the Skywalker bloodline steers their fate in a dangerous new direction. One that inevitably draws them ever closer to each other.**

 **Ship: Reylo Category: Drama/Erotica/Angst/Romance Rating: MA for graphic sexual encounters and graphic violence.**

 **Characters: Kylo Ren/Ben Solo, Rey, Finn, Poe Dameron, Rose, Leia Organa-Solo, Luke Skywalker, Hux, the Knights of Ren, the droids, and others...**

 **Time-line/Spoilers: All Star Wars movies up to and including "The Last Jedi," specifically the moment when Kylo Ren asks Rey to join him. From that moment on it's all my AU.**

* * *

 **His heart is the rhythm, mine is the echo. - A. Zavarelli, Echo**

 **Careful what you wish for; the darkness in my heart is kept in check by the smallest amount of light. - Liberty Stone**

 **The last five years had been a series of carefully orchestrated events. Every move, every strategy had been poured over in painstaking detail before it was set into motion. Pieces on a chess board. A collision of fate and circumstance. I d planned for every hitch. Every contingency. Except the one that blindsided me like a vat of acid to the face. I fell in love with her. - A. Zavarelli, Stutter**

* * *

 **Supreme Leader Snoke's Throne Room On-board "The Supremacy"**  
 **The Capitol of the First Order Mega-Class Dreadnought star-ship**

Fiery embers softly rained down around all around them, flickering wisps of ash across the lavish Stysian marble floor. Fierce heat ignited by nearby roaring fires suffocated the air, choking it with the scent of death.

Surrounded by the dismembered body of Supreme Leader Snoke and all of his dead Elite Praetorian Guards, Kylo Ren extended his gloved hand to Rey a second time, offering her more with one word than he could have possibly imagined he was capable of. And yet with her, this lowly scavenger with whom he shared such an immeasurable Force bond, her answer suddenly became the only thing in the galaxy he truly coveted. Nearly shaking with emotion, his voice trembled with a weakness, a vulnerability he was vastly incapable of hiding. "Please."

As a single tear cascaded softly down her cheek, Rey peered deeply into his haunted brown eyes. Eyes that were emotionally pleading, begging her answer. As if his very life depended on it. The sweet, warm swell of hope that had taken up residence in her heart as they fought side-by-side was now shattering into a million pieces. Or was it ever there at all? Had she imagined the Light in him? Had she seen only what she so desperately wanted to see?

No, it was there, buried so deep she wasn't sure if two lifetimes would be enough to force him to accept it. Never had she felt more conflicted then at this very moment. The Force wasn't guiding her in any precise direction. She simply felt its raw power coursing through her, at her command no matter the path she took. Here she was, the nobody who hailed from nowhere and came from nothing now had an entire Empire laid at her feet. The all-consuming passion she felt surging from him was charged and undeniable.

Need.

Profound fear.

Desire.

Communion.

Rage.

How deeply, painfully he sought to have her by his side. Who cared about him in a way he could verify with an absolute truth of sincerity. Who could summon the true nature of the Force the way he could and understood how it consumed you. Who wanted him in return, even if she weren't quite yet ready to face the depth of that thirst. Someone he felt deeply connected to in a way he hadn't ever felt before. And she understood that feeling most of all, because she felt the exact same way about him.

But this was an offer to rule those who wished for freedom from tyranny and oppression. From genocide and captivity minus any choice in their own fate. People who demanded their long silenced voices be heard and were willing to die for that right. Ben was offering her the First Order. To rule it at his side. Power. Control. Command. The galaxy itself.

To be with him.

Blinking sadly as the dark conviction of his gaze bore into her, another tear of anguish slid down the side of her face. Perhaps this was an ending. No, she could not save him. Not this day. Maybe not ever, and that burned through her bloodstream as the one person she truly felt connected to, had ever truly felt connected too, was simply unwilling to turn from the Dark Side. To walk away from Kylo Ren as she would only accept Ben in her life.

Devastating as it was to have a dream die, Rey knew what she had to do. For the Resistance. For her friends. For her own soul, her heart be damned. Slowly lifting her hand, she held his gaze until the last moment before she would call upon the Force to take her lightsaber from his grasp. And then she would do what she must.

That was when the world turned upside down!

An enormous explosion ripped through the mammoth throne room, buckling the floor beneath her feet as she was thrown violently into the air. The sheer velocity of the blast sent her body twisting viciously, pain radiating through her. The deafening eruption silenced her into unconsciousness a second after she saw Ben being violently propelled across the room through a wall of flames.

And then she blacked out.

Unknown Location Unknown Time

"... Rey?" Kylo weakly exhaled her name, barely audible, as he struggled to regain his faculties. His lungs burned with every single breath that he took, lancing hot pain in his chest. His body revolted against him. Unable to find his voice again or even open his eyes, he found himself lying face down on a filthy, cracked floor. Twisting his neck to get his mouth off the dirty surface, the right side of his face was scraped raw as he struggled to consciousness. 'Move dammit!' his mind screamed as he strained to roll over onto his back, willing his legs to obey and react. His eyes were dry slits, his lashes caked with dust, his senses mute.

Was he dying? He wasn't sure. His last memory was of waiting for Rey to answer him, and then an incredible blast that knocked him clear off his feet.

Calling upon the Force, gloved fingers dug into a jagged crack in the hard flooring, seeking purchase. Yet he wasn't able to summon the strength, unable to will his body to purpose. But he was finally able to collapse over onto his side, gasping in exertion. "Rey?" he called out to her once more, seeking her in the darkness. No reply. Nothing. He couldn't feel her presence. Couldn't sense her whereabouts. His heart raced at the implications. Once more he focused on summoning the Force with all his might. On calling upon its influence to drive the shock from his mind and jump start his body.

Gritting his teeth in deep concentration, he finally sat up, utilizing all his strength as his muscles protested angrily. His vision slowly ebbed back into focus as he peered around. No, this was not Snoke's Throne room. This was a much smaller chamber with dust-covered chairs that formed a ring around a fern-patterned floor. Gusts of wind blasted at his face as he turned to view the remnants of a massive transparisteel curving-window that granted him a panoramic view of the brilliantly lit, awe-inspiring Coruscant cityscape.

A note of recognition tickled at the back of Kylo's mind, but wasn't the top priority. At last he found the fortitude to rise, pushing off a sore knee, taking a couple of tentative steps toward the breezy opening. Coruscant in all its after-hours glory. Majestic. Captivating. Wretched. His gaze narrowed sharply, unable to make sense of how he came to be here. The Supremacy was clear across the universe and now he was on Coruscant. "This is impossible."

"Nothing is truly impossible."

The voice echoed all around him. In the span of a heartbeat, Kylo Ren spun on his heel. He was met with the ominous sight of a tall, dark-cloaked figure shaded in an ethereal transparent hue. A vision he was certain would never stand before him. "... Jedi."

"Yes, but I am much more than that to you."

The living Force avoided acknowledging its existence in the stranger's presence, denying his access. Kylo didn't recognize the voice, but was sure he had never met this person before. He remained wary, maintaining his distance. "Where am I?"

"Where I need you to be."

"Where is Rey?"

"Safe."

"Do not play games with me! Show yourself!" Kylo roared angrily at the stranger, surprisingly finding his lightsaber at his hip. He quickly took hold of the hilt, igniting the weapon. Its deadly red glow illuminated the darkness surrounding him. "Talk! Now!"

Slowly the stranger lifted his hands to his dark cowl, drawing it back over his shoulders, revealing himself. He watched the horrifying recognition fall over Kylo's features as he stumbled backwards until his back met the wall. "Grandson, we have much to discuss."

Old memories assaulted Kylo. His parents second home on Naboo when he was a child. The Naberrie family's old shared holovids... Unable to believe what he was witnessing, Kylo began anxiously pacing the floor, literally shaking with barely restrained rage. He yelled at the top of his lungs, aiming his red blade at Anakin Skywalker. "FOR YEARS I CALLED UPON YOU! I BEGGED YOUR GUIDANCE! AND YET YOU CHOOSE TO VISIT ME NOW AND IN THIS ACURSED FORM?!"

Anakin met his anger with a calm born of wisdom. His tone remained even, his shoulders set to purpose. "You called upon Vader."

"I called upon your true self!"

"You called upon my slave name," Anakin defiantly corrected, evoking a commanding presence. "And I will never answer to it again."

As a haze of fury darkened his eyes, Kylo thought of advancing. Of slashing with his blade, but knew there was no victory in trying to kill someone already dead. He tried focusing towards a clearer mind, but his resentment was clouding all. "Anakin Skywalker was a tool of the Grand Facade that was the dead Jedi Order!"

"Darth Vader was a beacon of fear for the Emperor." Arms crossed his chest, Anakin peered sadly at his grandson, knowing this confrontation was long overdue. And of vast importance. But Ben just hadn't ready for this before. "The Dark Lord of the Sith was a broken, mechanical being who sacrificed everything he once cared about for false promises and the emptiness of absolute power. He was a butcher. A destroyer. Responsible for the genocide of billions. For misery beyond measure. And the whole time he hated and plotted against his Master, but failed to ever conquer him. Ultimately, he was nothing."

"LIAR!" Kylo Ren shouted at the top of his lungs, barely able to control himself at the sight of Anakin Skywalker. Seething laced his gaze. Feelings so fragmented in his heart he felt like it might explode from his very chest. "Lord Darth Vader was the mighty fist of the Galactic Empire. His name struck fear across the stars. He was great save for one weak moment in sparing the life of that no good excuse of an Uncle of mine."

"Take care of your words when talking about my son," Anakin roared right back, aiming a finger at Ben. "He's a better man than both of us."

They circled each other now, predators in the wild. "Tell me, grandfather. Was he a better man when he tried to kill me in my sleep?"

Alas, his grandson was incredibly hard-headed. Anakin recalled his own failings. So many of them. Yet he was ever desperate to help Ben avoid his fall at all costs. "Search your feelings, Ben. Seize the truth as you forced Rey to do about her family."

The Force returned to Kylo that very moment, the striking sensation coursing through him like fire burning through his blood stream. He came to a standstill, and then violently slashed the back walls over and over again. He left long, fiery gorges in its wake. And yet he could not hide from the visions playing out in his mind's eye.

Suddenly he was taken back to the night he was betrayed. He felt Luke's profoundly horrific fear of the Dark Side rising in him. Of his growing power. Of his inability to control it. And of his uncle's sheer terror that he had utterly failed him.

Snoke had only just months earlier begun his seduction to the Dark Side, but Kylo had welcomed his direct attention. Welcomed the dark promise of true power and trust that he could lead. That he was capable. That his passions should be satisfied with whatever it was that he wanted. That he was ready to embrace his destiny. The Supreme Leader whispered his deep faith in Ben and gave him permission - finally permission to take and seize what he deserved! That his family had abandoned him all his life and were afraid of his power. Afraid of what he would become. That they wished him away, unable to deal - unwilling to deal with him.

Supreme Leader Snoke and the Dark Side were all that he had. All that wanted him. All that he needed. And through the Supreme Leader he would be born anew.

Desperate for direction after Luke's betrayal, Kylo had fallen for it all. Ambition. Pride. Naivety. Immaturity. And arrogance led him to Snoke after murdering most of Luke's students and burning the temple to the ground. From that dark moment on he had nowhere else to go. Feelings of cold isolation and loneliness had bred a deep-seeded resentment towards his parents. Towards the Jedi Way. Led him to the Dark Side of the Force where he could be free of all that hurt him. Of the past entirely, and simply take what he wanted.

But then there was Luke's last second hesitation and the venomous black guilt his Uncle felt that he could ever hurt his nephew. That he was wrong, and in that moment settled back on his heel, lowering his lightsaber, having never felt worse in his entire life. What he was about to do would have been a terrible mistake. That he loved the boy and only wanted to be a good teacher and watch him become the great man he knew he was capable of being.  
Frantically tumbling backwards from the sheer emotional force of the revelation, Kylo crumbled to the ground, shaking his head in his hands in defiance! His family had only ever given him lies to drown in. Had far more important tasks than raising a quiet, awkward boy. Had shipped him off to his Uncle when he wasn't enough for them to be kept around. Han needed the stars. Leia's work encompassed her all. He wasn't what either of them had wanted and he was certain of it. Had felt it all his life. "No... no, that's not how it was. NOT AT ALL!"

"Immerse yourself within the living Force, Ben. Face it as you forced Rey to face her truth. Don't run from this moment."

Unable to resist facing this head-on, Kylo calmly closed his eyes while seated on the floor. His Uncle's tumultuous feelings on that terrible night so long ago were frightening in how different he had always known them to be. They did not coincide with what he felt down to his very bones to be true. It was not possible. It couldn't be! "Liar!"

"Snoke manipulated your thoughts and feelings as Palpatine manipulated mine throughout the Clone Wars. The difference is that no matter those manipulations the Light within you has held the Dark Side at bay. You unconsciously reject giving yourself fully to the Sith. You were not trained by a Sith Lord. Snoke never attained that title. Nor had you any interest in becoming one. You took from the old Sith holocrons only enough to grow your abilities, but you did not follow the path to become a Sith Lord. That is your truth, faults and all."

Anakin felt the immense flood of emotional anguish descend upon Kylo with severe brutality. He roared at the ground, shaking violently, appearing sick with the knowledge that he had been so used. Felt his desperate need to run, yet run he did not. Facing this was the key to saving him. "That is why you feel such intense guilt at killing your father that you rage out at every living thing to bury it. That is why you couldn't kill your mother when you had the chance. That is why your feelings for Rey continue to grow despite you knowing the deeper they become the farther from the Dark Side you will forever be. You know this to be true."

Kylo leaped to his feet, sorrow clouding his hard features, breathing harshly. He slashed his blade across the floor at Anakin's feet, and then blazed past him, cutting down a half-hanging sliding door through the entrance before disappearing through its wreckage. Now met with an immense shadowy corridor that suddenly dawned on him where he was. "This is the old Jedi Temple on Coruscant."

"The top of the northwestern tower to be precise. Hundreds of years this Temple would stand as a beacon of the Jedi's light in the galaxy. Our fortress watch upon the dark," Anakin reported in an old, wistful tone. "This is where I truly died, Ben. Though I am complicit in Master Windu's death and my loss of control at those who killed my mother, this is where I fully immersed myself in the Dark Side of the Force. This is where I murdered Younglings and attempted to justify that I was doing the right thing in slaughtering them. That I was protecting the galaxy from what they would someday become." He sighed heavily, "The Dark Side clouded everything. Filled me with the rage and madness to butcher children. The origin of my greatest shame lies here. Of that with which there is no redemption, not even in the afterlife."

Slowly approaching his grandson, Anakin gazed into his dark eyes, imploring him to listen with his heart. "I brought you here to hold up my life as a cautionary tale. Do not follow my path," he begged his grandson, voice laced with raw emotion. "Don't throw away everything you are, or could become, for ambition and power. You refuse to accept the Light you know is inside you. The Light that Rey can sense."

Kylo's voice trembled with despair, peering away. "It is a fleeting weakness. I... I wish to cut it out."

"It is the source of your greatest strength and the key to your salvation," Anakin strongly rebuked. "That a spark of caring still exists in you. That you could never truly give yourself to the all-consuming nature of the Dark Side of the Force. For if you had you wouldn't have hesitated in killing your mother or letting Snoke kill Rey. You wouldn't feel anything over murdering Han. You would be numb to it all. It is that spark that is key to your redemption."

Kylo's hands drew into fists, his gaze narrowed angrily. "I have never sought nor asked for redemption. I OWN! my actions!"

"You have committed acts of great evil, Ben. Your hands are soaked with innocent blood. But each day we live can be better than the last if we wish it to be," Anakin conveyed in a powerfully passionate tone, moving closer to his grandson. "I feel the good in you. The conflict."

Turning his back to him, Kylo growled, "There is no conflict!"

"I uttered those same words hours before I tried to kill my own son. But they were as false for me then as they are for you now. At the very end, when Palpatine was about to kill Luke, I rediscovered the Light within and saved him. I killed my oppressor and lost my life in the process. I did one good thing, just one, but it saved my soul from utter damnation." Anakin moved to Ben's side, wishing that he could touch him. "I am guilty of horrors unimaginable, and yet even I found redemption. But the cost was everything I loved. A life of honor and respect. Obi-Wan. Ahosoka. All the good I'd done during the Clone Wars. All of the lives that I saved. My children. My beloved Padme... forever lost to me. Even in the peace of this afterlife I will never be whole without her," his voice trembled, pained still despite his elevated status of being. "That I never held my children. I was not there when they were born. Watched them grow. That Leia at best made peace with my memory, though has never loved me."

Anakin continued, "I betrayed and murdered my best friend. I killed my padawan. I hurt Padme with the Force. And with every evil act I sought more death to kill the feeling it left within me. And in the end I ruined my life. As Darth Vader I became nothing. I gained nothing. Accomplished no good. No legacy of worth."

Tormented by his grandfather's account, Kylo's eyes closed softly, unable to process what Anakin was trying to convince him of. "You became who you were destined to become."

"My mother did not wish nor raise me to become a monster. Neither did yours."

Shaking his head free of such thoughts, Kylo could not face this. It was it was too much. It was wrong. It had to be! "Snoke showed me true power! I am now above him. I have risen!"

"You are lost, Ben."

"STOP CALLING ME THAT!" Kylo raged at his Grandfather.

"I WILL NOT CALL YOU BY YOUR SLAVE NAME!" Anakin screamed right back at him. Ben appeared shaken by his claim. "Snoke tortured you and called it training. He turned you against your parents in the name of making sure you saw him as all that you had. He gave you a place in 'his' Empire so long as you remained useful and loyal. But deep down you know you were nothing more to him than a weapon." Watching his grandson's eyes widen in recognition, he continued. "You killed him because you were sick of being his slave. Sick of being his puppet. Being taken advantage of. But most of all, because he was going to hurt the one thing in the galaxy you care for. The spark of the Light within you. Rey."

Enraged at his claim, Kylo literally stalked straight through Anakin, fleeing the truth of his words. "She is... she will rule at my side!"

"Rey will not be turned and you know it." Ben paused his escape, fists clenching at his sides. Anakin pushed, "She would die first. She would kill you before she became what she hated most. But she risks her life and her friends because she believes in you, Ben. She believes in the good that she feels inside you. She believes you are worth fighting for."

The honesty of the moment was that he had felt all of that from Rey. But that depth of caring crippled something inside him. "Then she is a fool!"

Anakin sighed deeply, recognizing so much of himself in Ben. Too much for his own good. "You are filled with such fear."

"I fear nothing because I believe nothing is out of my ability to change."

Blinding arrogance seemed to be one of the Skywalker's less welcome traits. "Such lies, grandson. You fear the Light because to face it, you would have to own up to Snoke's betrayal and manipulation of your life. You would have to face all the evil you have done, and all the hurt you have caused. You would have to face killing Han and the sheer depth of anguish it would cause you to accept what you did. You would have to look your mother in the eyes and admit you were wrong. That you were wrong about all of it. Trust me, I know fear. I lost everything because of it. And you are drowning in it."

Head bowed, Kylo remained perfectly still. Unshed tears wet his eyes, but did not fall. He would not allow such weakness. Did not utter a single word for long moments, and then considered in a voice that trembled, "... and you think I can just turn back to the Light and be a good little Jedi again?"

"I think you can turn from the Dark and find your own way," Anakin declared to him. "I think you are strong enough to accept the consequences of your actions. I think you are smart enough to recognize the truth and face it. And after all the pain and hurt you will encounter, more than you think you can stand, maybe in the end Rey will stand at your side becomes there is nowhere else in the galaxy she would want to be. Her choice. And that would matter more than anything else."

Rey at his side because she chose him over everything else... But could he ever offer her the same? Could he walk away from the First Order that he could now control? The Dark Side was still clawing at his soul, whispering how futile it was to leave its security. That nothing remained on the other side that would ever accept him again. "It is... it is too much to imagine..."

"I love you, Ben." Kylo slowly shook his head, clutching his lightsaber tighter when Anakin spoke those words. "I love you with all of my heart and I wish for you all the good that there is, but you have made many, many mistakes and you must hold yourself accountable. You must face the consequences of your actions."

"You don't know what you're asking of me," he panted harshly, as if dying from a poison burning through his veins. Tears cascaded down his face, the misery choking the air from his lungs.

"Do it your way," Anakin told him. "Not mine. Not Snoke's. Not the Jedi. Not Luke's way. Yours alone. Look inside your heart. The reason is there. Snoke treated you like a weapon. He had you beaten and hurt to control you, and made you thank him for it. I challenge you to find your own path, Ben. Be a better man than I was. Become someone whose presence brings hope and good rather than darkness. It will be the hardest thing you have ever done. You will stumble. You will fail at times. You won't be trusted because you have not earned it. Turning from the Dark Side of the Force will look impossible. It will feel impossible. But I believe in you. And so does Rey."

Cataclysmic life-altering emotions stormed his thoughts as Kylo could barely grasp all of it. The lies and the truths laid bare before him, proof undeniable through the Force. His own devastating failings that brought him to this moment in time. That his Uncle did hesitate that dark night so long ago. That Snoke used the Force to mentally manipulate his memory and feelings. That he had at every turn unconsciously rejected the raw all-consuming nature of the Dark Side of the Force because he knew on some level that to become a true Sith Lord would be the death of him. Snoke had been his cruel, uncaring Master and had fashioned him into a deadly weapon he alone owned. But that ended now! "Kylo Ren was my slave name!" Ben quietly declared, voice rising, literally shaking with conviction to turn his back on Snoke's appointed destiny for his life.

"Yes," Anakin nodded his approval, standing at his Grandsons side. "Given to you by your oppressor. By your torturer. By the one who controlled your life. Who once owned you. Who's legacy is the First Order and its control of the galaxy."

Having spent years indoctrinated with the Sith Way, Kylo felt the enormity of the moment crash over him. Guilt, rage, pain, and passion dominated his spirit. He was no Sith Lord. Wished to kill that title. Bury it along with all old things. That was never to be his destiny. He had taken from the Dark Side all that he had wanted in the way of training, and now he wanted no more than to be truly free. To author his own destiny, absent chains to his very soul. Here! Now! He made his choice. "... to be truly free I must destroy Snoke's legacy. Kill it. Let it die."

Ben's voice rose powerfully, "I will see the First Order wither and die from within. I will tear it apart piece by piece. Make it unrecognizable. Turn it against itself. And once it is broken then I will leave the galaxy to fend for itself however it chooses. And I will find my own path wherever it leads me."

"The path before you will be harder than you can possibly imagine. You will be forced to face all that you have done."

Shutting his eyes, head bowed, Ben willed that bit of inevitable horror aside for another time. There would be a reckoning and he knew it. But not this day. Here and now he could take the careful first steps toward a destiny of his own choosing. "And Rey's part in all of this?"

"Same as yours. She must find her own path, but it will never lead to the Dark Side. She wishes to become a Champion of the Light. She will become a Jedi. And you will have to adapt to all of those things."

"However will I find my way back from the Dark? It... it feels like it is tearing me apart," he considered breathlessly, seeking the wisdom of one who had walked this path before.

"One day at a time, grandson. One step forward, better than the last. Always moving on. Pushing past mistakes and old pain towards a better day. And it starts now."

Ben suddenly blacked out.

* * *

 **Supreme Leader Snoke's Throne Room Inboard "The Supremacy"**  
 **The Capitol of the First Order Mega-Class Dreadnought star ship**

The Force awakened!

Rey came to with a startled gasp, nearly choking on the thick smoke filling the air around her. Stifling a coughing fit, her arm quickly covered her face. She frantically stumbled to her feet, unsure of what just happened or why. Her shoulder and back ached painfully as the deafening explosion had slammed her into the floor, but her senses were slowly coming alive. Red-alert alarms were blaring and beneath her feet she felt the gigantic star-ship shift ever so. All around her fires were burning out of control, devouring the lavish red architecture of Snoke's throne room. The mammoth chamber was slowly becoming a death trap that she had to escape. Ever the loner, her survival instincts kicked into overdrive. Intense, suffocating heat closed in around her, forcing her into action!

Never mind the pain, Rey had never felt more determined in all her life. The Force was her ally. It would guide her through the treacherous waters ahead.

Though emotionally drained from her 'experience', she looked around the sprawling chamber. "Ben?! Can you hear me?!" she shouted as loudly as she could, canvassing the area for any sight of him. Reaching out through their Force-bond, she felt him immediately, and then took off running past Snoke's dismembered body and to the far right of his throne. She found Ben walking through the fire towards her, the Force shifting the flames safely away from him, his command of it awe-inspiring. Though bruised and bloodied, he stared at her with an expression she had never seen before. She felt a ferocious focus in his Force-aura. His mind set to purpose on what he wanted. But most powerfully, his mind was on her. She swallowed hard at the intensity of it.

Ben was tightly clutching his lightsaber, but had not ignited it. In his other hand, he held hers.

And then he casually tossed it to her. She caught it easily, assuming a fighting stance. Her thumb hovered over the button, but did not press it. "Is this where we try to kill each other again?"

The great mystery of his life, Ben considered Rey. She was as hard as she was beautiful. The mere sight of her was captivating. Addictive. A dangerous combination for certain. Her Force-aura revealed her deep conviction, her unbreakable inner-strength, as well as some trace of hope where he was concerned. If it were but a mere spark now he had every intention of igniting it into a roaring fire. "We need to find out how badly this ship is damaged, and then..."

Him changing the subject didn't sit well with her. "Don't you want my answer to your offer?"

"Only after we've talked," and then for the very first time in what felt like forever, a roguish smile lightly curved his mouth. "And there's allot to talk about. But first."

Rey felt a powerful ripple through the Force as Ben extended both his arms. Supreme Leader Snoke's dismembered remains lifted off of the floor, and then were thrown atop three of the dead Elite Praetorian Guards who had attempted to avenge him. Effortlessly the other bodies rose and fell into the pile. Igniting his weapon, Ben wildly launched his lightsaber at the high-ceiling, slicing through a massive, lavish blood-red banner. The First Order's symbol erupted into flames as the elaborate fabric lit on fire. It slowly fell from the rafters, covering the bodies on the ground, flames billowing, engulfing all. A makeshift funeral pyre that burned out of control, consuming the bodies.

"Why?" Rey quietly asked, turning to him.

"Whatever that explosion was, we will never be able to convince the First Order High Command to believe it is what killed the Supreme Leader. And we will need them too."

"Kylo?" she tested, unconsciously holding her breath and lightsaber at the ready.

"Ben," he corrected her, fearing how long it would take him to get used to going by that name again. Holstering his lightsaber on his hip, he felt her questioning stare bore into him, as well as through the bond as she probed him for a sense of if this were real. "And before we get into it any further, we need to set things in motion before we get off of this ship."

His Force-shields weren't in the least protecting him from her probing his mind. That mental door of his was wide open, and was a bit shocking as he'd locked her out in the past. But now it was as if he wanted her to have access. She felt a sincerity and clarity she had never truly sensed in his presence before. Trusting this would be risking her life, but trust it she did. For now at least. Something changed with him. Something major. But she had to play her own cards close to her chest. "Which way to the closest hanger? We can take a ship and..."

"No. Not yet. We need to go the Shipboard Tracking Control Complex in the inner core."

"Why?"

"To destroy this ship. It's the only way your Resistance will survive the night," he replied when he approached her, and then reached for her hand. She shrugged him away, playfully.

"Why do men keep thinking I want to hold hands and run. Tell me the rest on the way." Rey nodded towards the exit at the far end of the chamber, and then they took off running, crossing the long black-fenced bridge with Ben on her heel. Just before reaching the end of the chamber, she felt a heartbeat of attraction swell within him when he looked at her. She wasn't sure what to do with that sensation, so she kept it to herself.

When they reached the elevator's sliding door the blaring red-lights echoed the emergency lock-down protocols where in place. Grimacing, Ben turned to Rey. "We can't cut through it. The Weign-transparisteel plating is lightsaber proof. Snoke was paranoid that way."

Rey pondered their options, all while shaken at the depth of closeness she felt for him now that she possessed so much more knowledge of his life. And his family's. The draw between them that was growing even when nothing was settled. "Together," Rey called out in the form of a direction rather than a question.

"From now on," Ben boldly declared his reply, noting the feelings she was suppressing out of fear. Something he understood all too well. Hands now extended, they called upon the Force as one, gathering its fathomless power, and then projected it forward. Ripping not only the thick elevator sliding door off, but the entire transparisteel-embedded moorings around it as well as elevator energy-carriage within. Sparks rained down upon them as jagged permacrete shards tore from their bearings. Heavy chunks of metal debris collapsed down the seemingly endless elevator shaft.

Ben peered down the wrecked opening, frowning. "That wasn't what I intended."

"We just wanted to slide it open, Ben," she replied a bit impatiently.

"You've had less training. I forgive you."

Rey's eyes widened in red-hot annoyance. "Wait a second! You think it was my fau..." And then she saw it. The tiniest smile. Could this be real? Was he teasing her? Why did she have to suppress her own grin. This was so not the time for any of that. "Ok, where too?"

"We jump."

Rey blinked. "I don't see a bottom."

"One hundred-feet down and to the far left is automated droid maintenance platform. When you jump, feel for it through the Force. As you would lift an object, surround your body and guide yourself while falling. Trust in your abilities."

Rey spared another glance down, mindful of the many enormous dwellings she pillaged back on Jakku. She wasn't afraid of heights in any way, but this ship was still in the process of blowing up. It's current status was on fire. "This can't be our only option, Ben."

"Trust me."

Crossing her arms, she nodded towards the shaft. "Fine, you go first."

Ben's gaze narrowed. "So you don't trust me?"

"I'll learn to trust your actions if you prove yourself. Not long ago I thought you were going to let me die or kill me."

"I could never hurt you."

"And I want to believe that more than you will ever know." Their gazes locked intensely, and then Rey looked away. "Now jump."

Not hesitating a second more, Ben did just that, leaping with a forward flip just this side of showing off as he descended into darkness. Poetic to a degree, but Rey suddenly wished she had more time to train with Master Skywalker. With roaring flames hot on her heels and death trailing behind that, she had to go for it. No thinking! Fear be damned, she had no intention of dying this day. "May the Force be with me."

Taking five short steps back, she raced forward and dived off the ledge, free-falling into the bowels of this mammoth starship. The gusting air whooshed wildly at her face, fluttering her clothes. Her mind was sharp, manipulating the Force as she caught sight of the platform, but was falling to fast. Her angle was all wrong. Suddenly though, her descent slowed. She felt Ben's Force-aura surround her as she safely landed on the platform.

Though her Force abilities were formidable, she hadn't had near as much training as Ben had. In terms of raw power she was likely his superior, or at worse his equal. But in the more nuanced ways of the Force, she was still a novice. An area he excelled at probably better than most. And he had the nerve to appear just a bit smug as he waited for her. "Don't forget I won our first duel and I hadn't ever used a lightsaber before." She felt his ire spike and smirked triumphantly.

"Whatever." Ben ignited his lightsaber, cutting through another emergency-protocol locked entrance door near a droid recharging port with three quick slashes. The turning security bracket clanked to the floor, outlined by the red heat of his blade. "This way!"

The prodigious corridor revealed a wildly maddening scene. Emergency alarms blared non-stop, while far down the left hall the towering blue-hue of a fifty-foot high ray-shield kept the depths of space from sucking this entire section of the ship into it. Bodies and debris floated on the other side. Limbs as well. Shredded data-lines and energy-wires dangled from the ceiling, raining showers of sparks cross the reflective floor.

To her right, Rey watched as dozens upon dozens of First Order officers, droids of all types, and mini-drones collided in a maelstrom of turbulent shock. Those aboard this monstrous cruiser were scurrying to their assigned or reassigned stations with a near violent urgency. Chatter was nonstop. She felt such a swell of anxiety in the area, ever mindful of her Force senses.

"Follow me," Ben pressed on as he and Rey deftly parted the immense crowds of people once Kylo Ren was recognized. Moving down the corridor, side-stepping a small fleet of Medical-Bay speeder transports tending to the wounded and rolling droids.

Navigating the huge labyrinth-like twists and turns of the Supremacy, with passages large enough for a small starship freighter to fly through, only underscored the sheer enormity of the First Orders resources. How could the Resistance ever conquer such a thing, Rey thought. And then she sensed something. "You're hungry."

"Haven't eaten in two days."

"I've gone longer."

"Mine was self-imposed."

"Shocking." She felt his tiny amusement at her quip.

Dancing through the thick crowds until they came upon a wall-mounted protocol droid at a cross-way, Ben stepped onto a small square platform before it. "Confirm Face-Scan recognition clearance. Now!"

The droid possessed only a humanoid upper body, covered in reflective silver chrome with red trim, and was mounted onto the wall via numerous electrical and data lines. It extended a broad red-laser field over Ben's face, canvasing his features. Its digitized voice acknowledged, "Face-Scan recognition is now complete. Full clearance acknowledged. How may I be of service, Kylo Ren?"

"What is the condition of the Supremacy?"

The droid's eyes flashed monetarily as it compiled data for Ben's request. "The lead Resistance cruiser engaged its hyperdrive engines directly into us at close range, nearly severing the left wing. The Resistance vessel was destroyed with no survivors. I would estimate seventy-nine floors are completely decimated, while fifty others are heavily damaged and without power. In addition, minus droids, there are two hundred-thousand casualties thus far. But that number will grow as rescue crews establish ray-shields in in-accessible areas. Core Ray-shields, anti-explosion protocols, and back-up power arrays have us operating at sixty-five percent full power. To summarize, we are heavily damaged but stable. First Order cruisers are enroute to assist, but are all several standard hours out. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

Slamming his gloved fist into the wall near the droid's head, it gave off a surprised squeak Ben ignored. He was hoping the ship was far more damaged than that. "Are the inner-core 407 trams operable?"

The droid began its assessment. "Five out of twenty that service the inner core only are operable and running at max capacity."

"Ben, we have company." Rey noticed a battalion of First Order Storm-troopers marching there way, weapons drawn. She immediately raised her own, igniting her lightsaber.

Moving off the scan platform to come between Rey and the Storm-troopers, once he was recognized they quickly lowered their weapons, falling back. "The nearest inner 407 tram. Lead us there and empty it. I need a private transport to the inner core."

The lead officer, brandishing twin red lines down the side of his helmet and armor nodded accordingly. "As you wish, my Lord. This way."

As the Storm-trooper battalion aggressively shoved them through the crowds mad onrush, Rey was at the very end of her patience as she needed answers from Ben and needed them now! She had no idea what she was walking into, and wasn't sure her feelings could truly be trusted where he was concerned. If they were to be alone on the tram that would afford them an opportunity to talk. Of course it could all go to Sith-hell and they could try to kill each other again.

But she sincerely hoped they were past that. Alas, that hope didn't extend so far as her hand remained on the hilt of her lightsaber.

Briskly walking down the seemingly endless corridor, they finally reached the broad glass-wall hub that housed one of the onboard tram stops. Ben dismissed the Storm-troopers after they cleared the car of all travelers. Moving onboard, as soon as the sliding door hummed shut and Ben input their destination via the wall-mounted data pad Rey faced him, prodding the butt-end of her lightsaber at his chest. "I want to know everything, now!"

"I need you to listen to me." Ben implored her as the tram-car engaged its anti-gravity engines, zipping forward rapidly. "The Supremacy is the one and only Mega-Class Star Dreadnought in the First Order Fleet," he began, taking a seat. She quickly assumed the one across from him. Mercy, she was beautiful. So kriffing beautiful. And the moment he thought it, he knew she felt it. He hoped it was welcome assessment, but he had a point to make. "It took three standard years and a team of sixty thousand at the largest space-shipyard ever created to build it. The wingspan alone is sixty kilometers, making it by far the most colossal starship ever built. It houses two million plus personnel."

He watched her eyes widen in equal parts shock and horror. "It is gigantic enough to dock eight Resurgent-class Star Destroyers, both internally and externally. This vessel is the official Capitol of the First Order. It is the first time ever that the Capitol of the old Galactic Empire or the First Order wasn't located on a planet."

The inconceivable level of advanced multifaceted technical engineering, cutting-edge scientific research, high-level manufacturing, and the sheer scope of this vessel were nearly incomprehensible. Rey's limited off-world experience could barely grasp something like this was even possible. "Impressive as that may be, you need to start explaining what we are going to do. Now!"

Ben had to admit he kind of liked it when she was bossy. A new side of her for him to capture. She quirked a brow, eyeing him. Yeah, she heard that. "I have decided to carve a new path for my life," he vowed calmly, and then felt her Force-walls immediately go up as she observed him ever closer, ever wary of his true intentions. He left himself bare, so that she might sense his sincerity. "I have considered Snoke's manipulation of my life and how I," he paused to compose himself, grappling with emotions he'd buried for far too long. "How I was wrong about what happened that night with Luke. To that end I'm taking responsibility of my own mistakes. I no longer choose the life of Kylo Ren. I denounce that name. I denounce what he stood for. It is the name of a slave who no longer exists," he declared with a fierceness. "My intention is to bring the First Order to ruin, and then I will be free of Snoke's legacy and able to forge my own. And I will try to give back some good in the wake of all the evil that I have committed."

Rey's first inclination was to feel overjoyed at such a monumental turn of events, but she did not. Wanted to hope, but tapered it down. Held her own feelings in check. Considered. Processed. She gave no outward reaction at all, no matter that her heart was racing. The implications were staggering, but this was happening all too fast. "Why now?" she challenged.

Ben pierced her soul with the intensity of his Force-aura. "Because I have faced my truth as I challenged you to face yours. About Luke. Snoke. My parents. The Force. All of it. Kylo Ren was who Snoke guided him to become, but I made all of the wrong choices. I own that. I ceased thinking of myself as Ben. I felt he was dead. I lived as if he were dead. And I still don't know who Ben is, but I am going to find out."

"What about the Dark Side?"

"The Dark Side of the Force no longer holds any meaning for me." Suddenly a sharp cry of agony escaped the pit of his throat as his head bowed, trembling hands covered his face in a desperate attempt to hide from his shame. "Turning from it has dire consequences, Rey. Without the Dark Side filling the emptiness inside you, once it's gone there's nothing left to replace it. Nothing that can invade the chasm of your soul. It has consumed your all. And what's left is a dead husk."

Such emotional torment lanced through him it brought tears to her eyes. Caused her to gasp as the immense strain on his soul was devastating, guilt ripping him to shreds. He was crippled within, barely holding onto this fragile goal in the wake of facing all that he had done. The misery he had caused, evil he committed was held at bay by sectioning off his thoughts from even addressing it yet. He could only deal with the here and now, even though she knew he would have to face his past in order to truly be free of Snoke's influence.

If Rey were to believe in what the Force granted her in its power, what she felt through the bond she shared with Ben was such a depth of sincerity that it was blinding. This was, for lack of a better term, authentic.

Ben Solo was back.

Rey perceived his deeply-rooted fears as well. That was he even up to this task? That anyone would believe him. That she would believe him. What redemption awaited a murderer of innocents whose victims numbered in the thousands?

Unconsciously reaching for him, Rey took his large hands between hers, and then took her time carefully removing his black leather gloves, tossing them to the floor. Black gloves that were stained with the blood of innocents. That had committed evil. Atrocities. But that part of his life was over now, and she was the one to end it. She killed it. She let it die. With his vulnerable gaze held in her own, she simply held his hands, reveling in their first skin-to-skin contact. It felt simply glorious. "Your hands are so warm," she whispered softly, her thumb gliding over lines of scars on his palm. Scarfs that no doubt had dark tales to tell.

"You're exquisite," Ben expressed tenderly, studying how she encompassed such beauty and strength so effortlessly. As foreign as the sentiment felt to convey, he was unsure if he'd even said it right. If that word or any other were equal to how he saw her. And then he captured to memory the emotional play of feelings that crossed her lovely face as she stared back at him. Apprehension and attraction waged war within her, and he reveled in its truth. He felt it was likely that no man, no one, had ever called her that before. But she was exquisite and so much more. "I need your help on this path. Will you join me?"

Ben had always struck a raw nerve in her, no matter if it engaged anger, rage, fear, or the interest she had in their Force-bond. This moment was indeed why she came here. That to save Ben Solo might give the Resistance a fighting chance. The invaluable Intel he could provide. Having another Force-adept in the ranks. What this would mean for General Leia. For Chewie. For Luke. And deep down, might reveal why she felt so connected to this tortured, broken soul. "If this is real," she exhaled a shaky breath, squeezing his hands in hers. "If you are willing to turn from the Dark Side and help the Resistance take down the First Order, then I will stand at your side. I will help you."

If Ben could convey all that he was and the new found Light within him, it was with these two fragile words echoed quietly and with reverence. "Thank you." Her hands were so small, delicate, and yet rough as she'd lived a very hard existence on Jakku. She'd seen brutality. Witnessed horrors he'd only caught the merest glimpses of in her mind's eye. Survived on her own since she was a child any way that she could. He felt that. The sadness. The fear. Starvation. Stealing. Scavenging. Hiding. She's been in so many, to many fights to count. She's known what it felt like to go to bed hungry. To not know where her next meal would come from. To be intimidated. To be beaten. To not know where she would sleep at night. The sheer depth of the loneliness she experienced eclipsed even his own. And yet her warm femininity softened something within him as she held his hands between hers. It was terrifying how badly he never wanted to let her go.

How long, how many years had it been since someone touched him without being ordered or summoned? But simply because they wanted to offer him comfort? How far he had fallen to go this long without honest, real companionship? Ben pushed it all aside, refocusing. "The Resistance must die."

"It will never die!" Rey countered with conviction, watching him shake his head in disagreement.

"You mistake my meaning. I meant in the sense that the First Order believes it to be true." Ben continued, "Look at this ship. The most powerful Resistance cruiser slammed into it by entering hyperspace at close range, and it wasn't destroyed. The order to abandon ship wasn't given." He needed her to fully grasp this concept, feeling her apprehension. Her disbelief. "Understand this, Rey. Four more are being built as we speak at shipyards near the core worlds. One hundred more Resurgent-class Star Destroyers are in pre-production for the next twenty-five standard years. The Resistance has run out of starships, allies, money, and luck. For it to survive it must appear dead while we work in secret."

Hating the truth of his words, Rey considered the Supremacy, peering through the tram-cars transparent ceiling at the gargantuan interior of this ship. It was extraordinary to say the least, stretching farther than her eyes could see. This one ship destroyed the Resistance fleet. Four of them would be overkill and ensure it never rose again. The firepower to combat it simply did not exist. So she put her thinking cap on. Time to make this make sense. "How would this plan of yours work?"

Exhaling a breath he didn't realize he was holding, Ben nervously combed his fingers through his dark hair. At least she was listening to him. "I don't have every aspect worked out, but I do have the framework of a plan. We'll have to work out the details together, but I must warn you. The First Order didn't rise overnight and won't be taken down easily. The process will be ugly and will require sacrifice. And you will get your hands dirty. Blood will be spilled. No one comes out of this innocent," he implored her to understand and accept.

"I will have conditions," Rey declared in a tone that was not up for debate. Shoulders squared, she was all business. "Some of them will be non-negotiable. There are lines I won't cross."

"I'd agree to anything so long as you are with me."

Again she felt his unhidden attraction to her. His want. The need that was more than, but included, physically. The way his private thoughts lingered on her mouth suddenly quickened her pulse. That he cared for her. Had thought about what it would feel like to take her, and it aroused him endlessly. And that he was deftly afraid to share that truth with her, but did so anyway because he felt if he hid anything she would leave forever. Her eyes sparked with intensity. This was nearly too much to process. She had to get back on track. "So all it took was an explosion for you to realize you shouldn't treat people horribly? Because if that were the case I would have been happy to strap a bomb to your chest a long time ago."

A ghost of a smile played at his mouth, fleeting as it was. She had a wicked sense about her. And he felt she was hiding something, yet he did not push. Her privacy was to be protected if he wanted to work with her. Going against his nature, he didn't probe. This moment wasn't about her secrets. "There's far more to it than that, but I need some time to process it all. I just know I wouldn't be here without you."

It was a strange thing to have before you exactly what you had hoped for, exactly the way you hoped it would be. Rey had wished for and been denied many things in her life. But this one moment, no matter where it ultimately led, felt triumphant. And then her attention fell to their joined hands, united for a common cause at last. "Ben, I want to believe this so badly, but..."

"I know. Actions, not words. That's why we're going to do two very specific things before we get off this ship."

"And they are?"

"I'm going to give you access to thirty-million credits for the Resistance." Her eyes widened in absolute shock. "And then we are going to destroy this monstrosity of a ship. It will throw the First Order in temporary disarray and give your people time to run, regroup, and plan. But know this. There is no military path to victory. There is no way the Resistance will ever combat the First Order and win. There are no allies they can rally to their cause that will ever gather a force strong enough to defeat them. What we will do is take out the old guard High Command and slowly replace them with those loyal to us."

"To the Resistance," she concluded.

Ben gave a nod. "And we will make policy changes, slowly. We will provide resources and place the right people in key roles throughout the First Order. We will consolidate new allies who have become sickened of being controlled by the First Order. And there are many. They will welcome our leadership because we will no longer hold a blaster to their heads to force their submission."

"Change like that will take time. We're going to have to play the long game," she surmised, and felt his acknowledgment. "We will infiltrate from within, poisoning the infrastructure of the First Order. We will fill its most elite ranks to bursting with those loyal to us alone."

Ben greatly respected how smart she was. Sensed she possessed a wisdom ahead of her years. She was as eager to learn as she was to be taught. Her ferocity matched her bravery. All that she didn't know, he had no doubt she could master in time. "People will die, Rey. And we will kill some of them."

"... we will discuss that part."

"To a degree?"

"To a degree."

"And I will rule as the Supreme Leader."

Of all the things that have shocked her today, and there have been many, that statement wasn't one of them. Rey figured it could be no other way. It was the only way. "You will be a target for every breath that you take. Eventually the old guard will get sick of being ruled by Force-users. Especially a younger one. And they'll come for you."

"For us."

"More for you," she teased playfully, her eyes lit with mischief. And there it was again. Him pretending he wasn't staring at her mouth. That he adored the shape and wanted for a taste. And her fighting the fact that she liked it far too much.

"I do not fear attempts on my life. They will reveal the enemies around us. I would expect no less."

"Expect resentment born of fear and opportunity. Nothing breeds boldness like upheaval." Rey was warming to the idea of this plan, even though success wasn't promised in the least. There were untold factors that could blow up in their faces. The Supreme Leader's death will no doubt be investigated. Nonetheless she was game. She was all in. "What role will I play?"

"In my new Empire," Ben gently squeezed her hands, reveling in her warm caress. His touch was unraveling any resolve she had left, and he enjoyed the power of that knowledge. He edged ever closer to her. "You can have anything that you want, Rey."

Something of an impish grin lit her face. A playfulness she hadn't ever employed before. The Force stirred with their growing attraction to each other. He flashed her a smile that reminded her of Han, and she wondered before today when was the last time that he smiled. If he even realized he was doing it. "And what if I want to be the Supreme Empress of the First Order and rule the galaxy," she flippantly joked with a flourish.

Ben's hand curled warmly around her own, softly tracing the tips of her fingers. When her eyes rose from their hands he held it intensely. "Speak it. And then it will be yours."

He meant it and Rey knew it. Felt it. Could take it and make it her own and dammit hadn't she suffered enough in life to deserve it all?! But no, this was not her way. This emotionally charged moment, the question, and her attraction to him were as surreal as anything she'd ever felt before. "We will discuss my role at a later date when I have more time to think about it. But rest assured I have no interest in the title Empress. Trying to push a stranger into that role would be insanity, no matter how much they fear you. Not to mention I have zero experience in any of it. We must move slowly. There's a lot I need to learn."

"You do realize you've been holding my hands for the entirety of our talk, right?" Rey blinked, and then blushed lightly, her expression shy all of a sudden, and he was nearly undone. There was no time to consider hiding how deeply she affected him. Her eyes held a spark he hoped matched his own.

"We're here." Rey released his hands as if they were on fire, quickly making her way to the sliding-door exit as the tram-car came to a full stop. The vibration of the engines went silent as the doors slid apart. Before she could step off she felt Ben close the distance between them, moving directly behind her, invading her personal space with the heat of his presence. The warmth of his breath softly fanned the back of her neck as he bent to her, spiraling sensation throughout her body at his nearness. "We will continue this later."

A pleasurable shiver crawled down her spine. "You presume much."

"And I will take far more than that."

Whatever he meant, and her arousal wasn't exactly helping her train of thought, she set her mind back in the game at hand. There was no further reply.

Following Ben across a long gray transparisteel bridge that seemed to hover above a gigantic energy node, they progressed toward a critical infrastructure facility filled with endless rows of massive data towers. And by the looks of them, they stretched what looked like kilometers ahead, all connected via ultra-thick black data lines and a core power station she was sure fed them all. They walked towards a raised control platform near the glowing power core, climbing up a flight of stairs. Complex computer terminals the likes of which she'd never seen before lined the walls, manned by a majority of droids and some First Order officers. Tightly coiled data cables curled down from the ceiling, and then splintered like an infection in every direction to all of the devices.

Suddenly Rey began rubbing her arms, alarmed at the instant shift as the temperature chilled her to the bones. "It's freezing in here."

"The liquid cooling system needed to ensure the thousands of multi-thread processors don't overheat require extremely low temperatures to be kept at all times."

"Yeah, well, I still wish I had a coat." Peering around at the mammoth facility, Rey felt a subtle hum in the air around them. Such a structure seemed to vibrate with raw power. "This place is incredible."

"The Shipboard Tracking Control Complex is the single most technologically advanced data-processing source in all the galaxy," Ben explained as they came to a full stop, having not yet announced their presence to the facility's staff. "The state-of-the-art systems here can track a targets last known trajectory with over a trillion possible destinations. That's how we hunted the Resistance. It is a source of great power and one of the First Order's most important resources. Its processing power is without measure and it is housed in the core of this ship."

"What are we going to do?" Rey walked forward with Ben, watching as he extended both his hands forward. The First Order officers all rose immediately upon recognizing him, standing at attention. She felt him summoning the Force, drawing upon its limitless reservoir, and then mentally projected it with deadly skill. Every single living First Order officer, and they numbered a total of nine, collapsed unconscious at their station.

"Destroy the droids!"

There was no thought involved, only action! Rey did not hesitate in drawing her lightsaber and lashing out with a violent sense of urgency. Together they were a ballet of absolute shock and awe, slashing and cutting down each and every droid before a single alarm could be sounded. And then they were done the Force echoed through her so powerfully she worried if she could even control it. "We're not killing the living."

"You're being bossy again."

"You like it," she playfully taunted, stepping over droid parts.

Ben wondered just how long could he leave himself so open to her. Couple that with the thrill of watching her wield her lightsaber, which turned him on, he wasn't sure what to do with her or these new feelings. "There are more than enough escape pods for all of them in a small alcove behind that left wall."

Rey shutdown her lightsaber as Ben approached her.

"Right here, right now, this is the moment of no return," Ben expressed seriously. "If you have any doubts."

"Plenty."

"Or trust issues with me."

"Certainly."

"Or concerns that we are going to die."

"Pretty sure we are."

Rey had the nerve to smirk and Ben was so enraptured by her he knew it would be the death of him. "Then this would be the time to back out. Take one of those escape pods yourself and try your luck out there with what's left of the Resistance."

"And what of you?"

"I would go it alone."

That mattered. That even without her he would take this alternate path to try and become a better man. That the Light had found its way into him again. His conviction was set. Kylo Ren was truly dead. She felt his anxious, impatient fear that she might actually leave. That yet another person he cared for might wish him away. His feelings were sabotaged by Snoke so long ago, and then severed by his own actions. The long road back would not be easy for him. But he wouldn't be going through any of it alone anymore. "Do you feel the call to the Light?"

His quiet answer looked visibly painful to reveal, and yet was his truth. "Yes." And then his head bowed, shame filling his heart over all that he had done. This was why it was so hard, nearly impossible to turn from the Dark Side. The guilt ate away at all that you are because of what you once were. Self-hatred followed turning from the Dark Side. "But I do not deserve it."

"Then why won't you take one of the escape pods and just disappear from it all?"

"Would you come with me if I did?"

Her voice trembled with emotion, "It would break my heart to say no."

"But you would?"

"I would."

Rey was unbreakable in her determination to do the right thing. He knew he would never attain such unbreakable character, but he hoped to try. "I'm inspired by your conviction. By the courage you possess to fight for what you believe in even if it costs you your life," he sighed. "I will see my plan set forth, and then begin to make amends for all the pain I have caused."

Without hesitation. Rey took his hands in hers once more, facing his vulnerability with the strength of their unity. "I choose to be at your side. It is where I want to be."

"For the Resistance?"

She paused momentarily, facing his anxiety, and then confessed softly, "... and for you."

The raw lust to kiss her now consumed him like the will to live, but this was not the right time. Her feelings were laid bare to him, rousing such confidence his heart could barely contain it. After summoning a bit of bravery he gently drew her closer, but she playfully slinked away, her grin teasing.

"We will continue this later," she enjoyed throwing his words back at him. That little shy smile of his was far to addictive. "What's next?"

Ben made his way toward a Togruta female First Order officer and hoisted her thin frame out of her chair and over his shoulders. "Escape pods can be launched from the terminal on the right next to those surge monitors."

"Let's get all of them loaded." Summoning the Force, Rey lifted officer's twice her size as they carried out his plan. Once the last First Order officer was safety settled inside an escape pod, she walked up behind Ben who had taken a seat at one of the computer terminals. He was typing in multiple access codes, and then submitted to a retinal scan. "You're leaving a login trail our enemies will track."

"That's why I'm using Hux's user-name and passwords for final clearance."

Rolling her eyes, Rey snickered, "And what of the security cam footage of you killing Snoke?"

"Snoke was a paranoid, arrogant relic who refused any security protocols in his throne room. He only accepted the constant presence of his Elite Praetorian Guards. Communications were handled at his discretion, and he chose when he would reply." Ben completed his task, noting the pop-up window signaling the data-pad was linked. He typed a final series of commands. "Eventually Hux will try to reach the throne room, but thus far he hasn't."

"How do you know that?"

"Because he would have found the charred remains of Snoke and immediately announced over the entirety of the ships communications system that the Supreme Leader was dead. And then he would likely attempt to assume the role himself." Before Rey could reply, Ben handed her a thin card-sized data pad. She observed it, turning it over in her hand.

"Am I rich now?"

"Thirty million credits richer," he reported, sensing her excitement over what this represented. The Resistance was getting a shot in the arm and Rey would have some tangible proof he was sincere in helping. "The Intergalactic Banking Clan main vault facility on Outer Rim world Scipio will accept this data-pad access file and transfer the funds anywhere and to anyone you wish. This is a private channel the First Order uses for operations that needed to be kept off of the books. The Banking Clan doesn't ask questions. The Resistance can use the funds to slowly rebuild and recruit."

Tucking it inside her boot, Rey was nearly speechless. "This gift will help tremendously. It will literally save lives."

"I just, he lost his voice for a moment, trying to say this the right way. "I just want to be worthy of all the faith you have placed in me. That you most of all know I am trying."

Affection settled warmly over her for him and him alone. No one had ever so valued her opinion. Had ever needed her so. Had ever looked at her like she was the sun. She couldn't find the words to convey what she was feeling. It was all so new. Such uncharted territory for her heart.

"Now on to part two of the plan." After launching the First Order officers escape pods, he motioned for her to follow him as they quickly descended the raised control-platform and walked down a short connected hall to stand before a giant cooling vent. Thick clouds of billowing warm air rose in rapid succession. "When we damage this, things will happen very, very quickly. Many will die from the initial explosion. There is no way around that. But the catastrophic blast that will destroy this ship will take nearly fifteen minutes at best. Everyone won't make it off alive. Panic will set in the moment we begin. The core power node of this facility sits at the inner sanctum of the Supremacy. Destroying it will set off a unstoppable chain reaction."

Ben faced her once more, imploring her to understand. "Blood will be spilled. What we do, we do for the greater good. There is no other way."

Bracing herself, Rey absorbed the dark moment, warring with reason versus reality. The moment of no return had arrived. Deep down she knew it was naive to think taking down the First Order would be a simple, uncomplicated affair. Hard, unfair, and likely cruel decisions had to be made in order to end its rule. And if she were all in, then she had to be ready to make the sacrifice of a few for the many. She had to act! Take ownership of her role in all of this.

To that end, it was Rey who followed Ben's direction and shut down the Power Cores Cooling system. They watched the heat levels rise to deadly temperatures. Her hands disabled the network connection so that no other systems couldn't remotely stop what they were about to do. It was her who disengaged the security back-up power settings, and then destroyed the controls with a devastating Force-push that tore the panel from the wall, and the entire wall itself, down on the floor. And it was her lightsaber that cut through an entire embankment of data-cables and generator coils that saw Red-Alert alarms immediately start blaring as they raced back towards the tram-car.

Safely ducking inside, the sliding doors hummed shut. Rey set the course for the main hanger bay via touch-screen map. Ben punched in a security code on the wall-mounted communications console. This opened a comm to the emergency channel that would broadcast throughout the starship. "This is Kylo Ren. The Supreme Leader has been killed. The Resistance will pay for this horrific attack. Effective immediately, I am assuming the role of Supreme Leader," he declared boldly. "We are facing an catastrophic crisis. The Shipboard Tracking Control Complex's cooling array has been severely damaged during the attack. The Power Core is overheating at a unstoppable rate that will destroy this ship. Soon the fuel cells will rupture. The order is given to abandon ship immediately! Launch all escape pods. Engage your tracking beacons so that rescue forces can find you. I repeat, abandon ship now! You have ten minutes."

Rey felt the wild emotion Ben experienced that was equal parts freedom and shock at the course of events he set in motion. "No going back now."

Ben gave a whimsical nod. "No going back now."

The tram-car raced towards the gargantuan Supremacy hanger bay on an anti-gravity wave, winding the titanic interior at break-neck speeds. They saw dozens upon dozens of other fully-packed tram cars all approaching the same destination as the tram-tracks converged. Whirling past a broad glass-hub facing deep space, countless glittering lights began appearing as escape pods were launched by the thousands.

And yet all that Ben could do was stare at Rey.

"You killed your Master, assumed the role of Supreme Leader of the First Order, turned from the Dark Side of the Force, convinced me to join you on this suicide mission, gave the Resistance thirty million credits, and you're in the process of destroying the greatest starship in the galaxy and all you can think about is kissing me," Rey teased him as they sat together. Having someone to be playful with was as foreign to her as it was exhilarating.

"That's not true."

"I can feel it, Ben."

"I'm thinking about doing a lot more to you than just kissing," Ben vowed in a quietly commanding tone, forcing her hand. Rey suddenly severed their connection, and he was impressed how deftly she could control it now. It was her turn to pull away, but the faint blush he so adored told the tale that she caught a glimpse of all that he desired to do to her. Of the conflict he sensed from her, his desire wasn't one that she feared. "I thought our bond would be severed when Snoke died."

Thankful for the change of subject, Rey shrugged. "Maybe some things are just meant to be."

Ben liked the sound of that more than he could say. "We're here."

What greeted Ben and Rey on the enormous hanger bay was nothing less than monumental chaos. Blustering fires decimated a quarter of the south side of the hanger, with flames burning out of control. Military and support shuttles, cargo ships, fighters, and freighters were taking off at a maddening pace, urgently fleeing this doomed starship as soon as they were fueled. Various other vessels were ushering in people as fast as they could, with some being shoved away or shot at the bottom of the boarding ramp once capacity was met. Thousands were running for their lives as the ship rattled powerfully from another massive explosion, buckling the floor beneath their feet.

Dead bodies littered the ground in every direction as Ben and Rey raced across the sprawling hanger towards a ray-shielded area on the far-north side that housed Kylo Ren's personal Tie-Silencers.

When he didn't feel her at his side, Ben halted as he sensed Rey reaching out through the Force behind him. She had sensed something and was drawn to it. "We have to leave now!"

"Finn."

"FN-2187? The traitor?"

"My friend, who I care for a great deal," she admonished, her eyes blazing with fury. "Thank goodness he made it off this accursed ship. And I'm sure he will have a Sith-hell of a story to tell me," she grinned.

"So you two are close?"

Noting a tick of uncharacteristic jealousy, Rey rolled her eyes. "Really?!"

Running across the breadth of the massive hanger, past frantic crowds of terrified First Order officers, they finally approached a control console in front of the ray-shield. Ben furiously typed at the black keyboard, inputting his login information. A chime sounded, and then the ray-shield melted away, revealing two cutting-edge black Tie-fighters. They appeared brand new as if they'd never been flown before. "We're taking the one on the left?"

Rey greatly relished the idea of piloting one of them, unable to look away from the sleek fighters. "But there are two of them."

"The new experimental Tie-Silencer 3.0 on the right has far more firepower, better communications, long-range hyperdrive, and a state-of-the-art cloaking device. The one on the left is a spare of the one I already have"

"And you just want me with you," Rey noted what she heard whispered in his mind, and pushed further doubts aside. "Let's go."

The Tie-Silencer 3.0 was the most technologically advanced fighter in the First Order fleet. Bigger, with more cabin space than the Tie Silence 2.0, it was nonetheless built for incredible speed and agility. Possessing a ferocity of firepower, it was as dangerous for the pilot as it was for an opponent. So much so that only a Force-Adept was even capable of flying it. And this one had been personally commissioned by Kylo Ren with special modifications that Siena-Jaemus Fleet Systems designed to his specifications over the course of several standard months.

When Ben climbed into the cockpit he quickly pressed keys on the right armrest computer-panel that drew the ships control-console further in, depressing it slightly backward, creating extra room between it and his luxurious pilot's chair.

Standing on the top rung of the boarding ladder, Rey's eyes narrowed, arms crossed her chest even as deafening explosions rang out around them. "I'm not sitting on your lap."

"There's space on the end of the seat. It's extended. Trust me." He felt her annoyance about to erupt. "I'd like to remind you that the Supremacy is about to explode. I would not like to die this day. And I especially don't want that to happen to you."

Grumbling her disapproval, Rey launched herself inside the cockpit, settling her back against Ben's chest on the seat. Being petite and not very tall, she was surprised by how much space she had, and with the raised cockpit hub, she could almost stand up. It was far from uncomfortable, except now she was settling in against the warm heat of a very warm and kind of irresistible Ben Solo. And as the cockpit hummed shut, locking into place, when the powerful engines came alive she felt a sense of triumph run through her. All that she had wanted since boarding this ship was accomplished. More than she could have hoped for.

The control-console's dials lit up, flickering to life. The flight-wheel rumbled, ready to be taken. "I'm flying," she boldly declared, deciphering where the navi-computer was and how to input. Typing in hyperspace coordinates, she grabbed the flight wheel, and then flipped a switch underneath it that disengaged the landing brace locks.

"Wait, what?!" Ben had zero time to react as her natural instinct as a pilot gave her a quick command of how to fly his ship. Engines engaged to life, shields raised, and she didn't hesitate to gun the engines. The sleek fighter lifted off quickly, shifting course at a blazing rate of speed towards the hanger bays opening. Engines accelerated into overdrive as they escaped out the burning hanger bay into deep space.

Moments later an unfathomable explosion, so magnificently colossal it lit the darkness of space itself when it detonated as they made the jump to hyperspace.

The Supremacy - Capitol of the First Order and Supreme Leader Snoke were no more. Ashes scattered across the stars.

* * *

 **Ben Solo's Tie-Silencer 3.0**

 **The Outer Rim Territories**

"This tastes absolutely divine," Rey praised as she captured another delicious bite of the sweet Krofa bread, savoring each yellow crumb as she pinched the last few and then dropped them in her mouth. She was acutely aware that Ben was watching her closely. Intensely. Her perception was born of natural feminine intuition this time, and not through the Force as he had severed their Force-bond ever since they left the Supremacy. Thus far she hadn't asked why, but his close scrutiny unnerved her a bit. "Care to tell me why you commissioned the most acclaimed starship manufacturer in the galaxy to build you a mini-food heater and triple-sized refrigerated storage bin just behind your pilot's chair? And then to stock it with real food instead of synthetic pre-packed rations that would last much longer?"

Stabbing a forkful of steaming Nerf-steak to his mouth, Ben ate it quickly, every motion efficient and careful as if eating were a training exercise. Measured and precise. Eating for him wasn't any more a function of survival than cleaning his lightsaber. Answering her question though, that drew him to the past he knew would haunt him forever. "My father cared little for technologically advanced or forward-thinking tech. He just wanted to always be prepared and ready for any circumstance."

"Sounds like Han. Get by however you get by," Rey smiled fondly, missing the legendary smuggler and Rebel general who had befriended her. In addition, she knew what it cost Ben to even speak of his father. But it was good that he did. On her second plate of food, she kept on eating, giving him his space.

The expected dread of bringing up his father was something Ben was prepared for, though it hurt even worse than he imagined. A day of reckoning was coming when he wouldn't be able to escape what he did and would have to face it head on. Perhaps the courage to even speak of his father now was due in part to turning from the Dark Side. Over maybe it was the courage inspired by his present company. "A year ago after a skirmish with the Resistance near Kamino I was separated from my squadron. My fighter was heavily damaged and left adrift in space. I lost communications, engine power, and was stuck out there for thirty-seven straight hours. I had never been so hungry in all my life, and that's saying allot because I don't eat regularly."

"So when it was time to modify your personal Tie-fighter you decided more and better tasting food was on your must-have list?""

Ignoring her playful snark, Ben gave a nod, watching Rey eat while sitting in front of him with her back to the control-console. Ushering the hurt out of his mind, he concluded, "My father's influence lives on."

Setting aside a bit of her steak out of habit, Rey was impressed that he hadn't skirted any subject thus far. His openness had put much of her anxiety at ease. Things weren't perfect, but they were progressing. And that was a start.

Ben's Tie-Silencer III hovered in deep space near the Outer Rim world Scipio. Its frigid, icy blue surface was ever apparent as one closed in on the home of the Intergalactic Banking Clan. Surroundings aside, Rey and Ben ate in comfortable silence, both pondering why them, in this place, at this time.

When she caught him assessing her again she held his gaze, peering beneath the surface of him. She took another bite. "You're staring at me."

His eyes were on her mouth as she bit into her steak, tracing the soft curve of her lips. "You're worthy of being stared at."

Alone amongst the stars in his fighter, Rey enjoyed the warm tingles what he said cascaded throughout her body. It didn't matter that she wasn't used to anyone making her feel wanted. It was enough to simply enjoy the sensation. His intense focus on her alone felt mysterious and sexy, his attraction clear and without a doubt. She knew that she should feel nervous or awkward as she had little significant experience with the opposite sex, but for some reason she felt bold. "I want to ask you a question."

"Then ask."

"Tell me something about yourself that I don't know."

Emitting a huff beneath his breath, Ben turned away from her, peering into space. "Most everything there is to know about me is terrible."

"Give it all to me. I can take it."

By the Force did this woman enrapture him, methodically curling her way round his very soul as if she knew the precise route to take. Ben knew he couldn't hide from her even when he wanted too. Even when the Force wasn't involved. But he wasn't capable of answering her just yet. Was still processing how to be open to another person past simply opening his thoughts completely through the Force and going from there. But that wasn't intimate. Wasn't personal. It was all he had at the moment though. "Another time."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

Minutes later Rey felt his warm appraisal again as she bit into her second Nerf-steak, tearing it apart with her teeth, and then wiping her mouth on her sleeve. Suddenly a note of self-consciousness fell over her. "I must eat like an animal to you. And I can't apologize because table manners were never taught to me on Jakku. I ate to survive, not to impress."

Ben playfully aimed his fork at her. "So you're not perfect?"

He was teasing her again, and seemed to be enjoying himself far too much. Her voice matched his levity. "I'm nobody, remember?" And just like that his mood darkened, and a regretful expression clouded his features. He carefully set his plate aside, and then leaned toward her, beckoning her full attention.

"Rey, I regret ever saying that to you," Ben apologized to her because to not do so would be the way of Kylo Ren. "The Dark Side of the Force controls you by ensuring you feel it and it alone is all that you have. Your life exists only through the power it permits you to wield. Individuality breeds self-worth, which is abhorrent to the Dark Side. So when I said that to you, I was trying to make you see that only I could give you your self-worth and identity. That you were nothing, but through me you could be born again. That I alone could give you life."

Her stare was lit with revulsion. "That's sick."

"It is indeed. Such is the way of the Dark Side. When the fabricated poetry of its mantra about passion and peace is torn apart, it is revealed that the Dark Side requires you to forsake everything for it to rule you." Ben considered the madness that was the Dark Side of the Force and how he was ever able to escape it with his life. And how hard the road ahead would be without it. "You define who you are, Rey. That's something you already know. But would you like to know how I truly see you?"

"That depends."

"On?"

"If you have any more sweet Krofa bread," Rey beamed for him alone, and as he tore off most of what was left on his own plate and handed it to her, the pull towards him felt absolutely magnetic. "You may regale me now."

Ben felt a weight lifted as she was far to charming for her own good. Her presence in his life woke feelings and emotions he was sure were dead inside of him, like most everything else was. "The cruelty you endured in your childhood failed to fortify bitterness in your soul. Never evolved into an uncaring nature. Never touched the Light inside you. No matter how unfair your life had been the moment you were able to help people, you did. No hesitation. Most would have let the darkness in and drowned in it until they were numb to the pain of their existence. I certainly did. And yet here I sit, my life restored due to your faith in me. Your belief that there was something inside my wretched soul worth saving. So in my eyes you are an inspiration and a hero. You're certainly my hero."

Having never heard anyone speak of her in such a manner before, Rey knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she wanted to keep him. And that was utterly terrifying. Twirling her fork in a teasing manner, she pointed out, "I think you also said something about me being exquisite."

She was toying with his obvious attraction to her now. "Endlessly so."

They stared into each other's eyes and the heat was absolutely sweltering.

Nonetheless, they settled back into finishing their meal. For a time it was easy to daydream that things would always be this simple and carefree. That they could banter and flirt with the knowledge that a passionate inevitability was there for the taking. Alas, both knew this was just the calm before the galactic storm to come. The First Order wanted to rout the last of the Resistance and murder them all, killing the hope of any who would stand against it. The Resistance, barely alive as it was, weren't even aware of the secret plan they now had no choice in being a part of. General Leia, Finn, Poe, and Luke would be shocked to learn that Kylo Ren had turned from the Dark Side and was willing to help them. But trusting that would take a very long time indeed. Then would come the absolute shock of learning she was joining the First Order, working at the side of the new Supreme Leader in order to ultimately bring it down.

The work to come would be incredibly challenging. There was no simple quick-fix that would get the galaxy out of the mess it was in.

Finishing off her second bottle of water, Rey tried to recall the last time she felt so satisfied after a meal. That she had eaten her fill and possessed no want for more. There wasn't a much worse feeling in existence than being so hungry you couldn't sleep at night, and yet she'd experienced that on more days than she could count. A sense of pride suddenly filled her that by her own hand she would never, ever go hungry again. "We've depleted half your rations."

"You're worth thirty million credits now. You can buy me dinner next time."

Rey pursed her lips. "I have no intention of buying the Supreme Leader of the First Order dinner anytime soon."

Amusement brightened her eyes. "And here I thought you liked me?"

"I might," she smirked ever so, just this side of shy. "But it's not my money. It belongs to the Resistance."

"Still such a loyal soldier."

"My allegiance is to the Resistance."

"My allegiance is to you."

Ben's words warmed her heart and scared her immensely as her growing feelings for him were as uncontrollable as his own. She thought that a clever reply was in order, but had none to convey. He simply wanted to be in her life and loyal to her alone. And it felt amazing to her.

Lost in his thoughts, Ben failed to notice when her fork stalled in midair, and then she sat it down on her plate, setting it aside. She stared at him, focusing, and then made her move forward. She invaded his personal space, so close he forgot to breathe. She softly brushed the pad of her thumb over the corner of his lip, swiping away an errant crumb, and when her lips parted softly he thought it was the most erotic thing he'd ever felt because it was her touch. He swallowed hard and felt the enjoyment of the action triumphantly flow through her. "Careful, Rey. You're playing with fire."

"Considering the night I've had, I dare anything." Rey felt a certain kind of joy every time Ben smiled, but he did so like a man that felt guilty for feeling any emotion at all. She had believed that the greatest element they shared was their deep conviction to see the First Order fall into ruin, but that just wasn't entirely true. And she was certain two more mismatched, broken, emotionally ill-equipped people who developed feelings for each other did not exist.

"I hate that I have to go back to the First Order," Ben declared as he gathered their plates and disposable utensils, and then dumped it in a side-hatch. He pressed a panel switch, watching the hatch swivel, and then their trash just floated away. "That I have to be Kylo Ren again."

"Kylo Ren is dead!" Rey assured Ben in a commanding tone, leaving no room for a rebuke. "You will do what you must, by whatever means, but without the Dark Side's influence."

"We won't live solely in the Light either, Rey," Ben forced her to accept this truth. "We will sabotage. We will assassinate. We will intimidate. We will torture. We will blackmail. And we will betray. You need to understand this. There is no way to destroy the First Order's rule without there being dark days ahead."

Rey adopted a serious, reflective expression. Calling upon wisdom shared with her recently, she stated, "One day at a time, Ben. One step forward, better than the last. Always moving on. Pushing past mistakes and old pain towards a better day."

Words spoken to him by his grandfather, Anakin. The quiet facade she fixed him with held a note of secret and a whisper of the unknown. Had Rey been visited as well? "Is there something you want to tell me?"

"Another time."

A repeat of his own words. There could be no doubt Rey had secrets of her own, and for some reason he wasn't afraid of them. Trusting her, respecting her, meant letting her let him in at her own pace.

Anything to keep her with him, he would do. She was the Light shining a path for him out of the Darkness.

"Are there any questions you want to ask me?" Rey switched gears, slinking ever closer to him, and then surprised herself when she found the warm space between his thighs spread for her. She advanced, and then turned around, resting back against his chest. Sighing at the comfort, she nestled into his warmth, her head lying over his shoulder. How long had it been since she allowed anyone this close to her? Or felt what she felt for Ben? Her inner conflict had nothing to do with the Force, and everything to do with being so far out of her element and just trusting that she was doing the right thing.

Ben's Force-aura was unmistakable to her. The powerfully protective feelings he didn't try to hide that were nearly terrifying in their intensity swept over her. Feelings that evolved slowly into the primal desire she awakened in him. That feeling was mutual as the soothing heat of his soft breathing over the back of her neck seduced her. Yes, she was definitely playing with fire. "Ask anything."

Lost in the lush ambiance of her slender form pressed against him, Ben had never known a heaven as pleasurable as Rey against him. "The only questions that I have are ultimately irrelevant and make me feel greatly immature."

His blunt honesty was appreciated. "Are they connected to why you severed our bond ever since we fled the Supremacy?" Peering innocently over her shoulder, her gaze daring him to answer, Ben's tense expression was all the evidence Rey needed. "Does having me pressed against you affect you so?"

That impish smirk of hers would have to be tamed someday soon, Ben promised himself. Rey was ever the unsolvable puzzle. Figuring her out might take a lifetime. That was why he tempted fate, slowly sliding his arms around her middle, holding her flush against his chest. He perceived through the Force her contentment in his arms. "While piloting through Hyperspace I didn't think you needed my carnal thoughts along for the ride."

If he only knew how many carnal thoughts of her own had crossed her mind. "That didn't answer my question."

"You already know the answer, Rey."

She arched a knowing brow, mouth curving into a slight grin when he peered away. She could tell he enjoyed their verbal sparring more than he knew how to deal with. All of a sudden she felt him through the Force again as he re-established their link, his thoughts laid bare before her once more. She listened intently, and then her breath caught as his question became crystal clear. "You want to know if I have ever been with a man."

"Or woman."

There was no hesitation. "The answer is yes."

"To which?"

"The former. That is where my interests reside."

He struggled to strangle the fierce jealousy he suddenly felt as it had no place here. As ever, outwardly he appeared indifferent. But he knew she knew. "Tell me about him?"

"Them," Rey corrected his query, noting an angry tick in his jaw and a flutter of rage through their bond. It was as close to being cute as anything she'd ever felt from him. "I have been with only two men. A third nearly, but was not given consent."

Ben's chest tightened at her words. His dark eyes narrowed that very second, a stark contrast to Rey's very controlled coolness. "You were attacked?"

With a thoughtful nod, Rey summoned the ugly memory, craning her neck ever so. "I was peddling goods at the Niima Outpost. A humanoid trader from Golgotha tried to rape me when I was fourteen years old. I was starving and he lured me inside his rusted freighter with the offer of extra credits in exchange for a Zion power converter I scavenged off a downed Huttese cargo ship. I remember hating the terrible scent of Knockback Nectar on his breath," she recalled in a voice that could only be described as vacant.

The rage that Ben knew he would from now on struggle to hold in check was growing dangerously close to the surface as faint images of that ugly night was shared through their Force-bond. Rey had been so young and vulnerable. So alone it was heart-breaking. That he could now identify that heartbreak as he was severed from the Dark Side was startling. "You don't have to tell me."

"Yet I desire to. I have made my peace with it long ago."

"I want to visit true evil upon him."

"For me?"

"For you."

Rey paused in his arms, the warmth of his protectiveness as foreign as it was beautiful. "He's dead, by my hands. I had a small short-blade tucked inside my boot. When he threw me down on the floor and tried to tear my trousers off I stabbed him in the neck several times until he stopped moving. There was so much blood I just couldn't get my hands clean enough," she quietly relayed the horrific event. There had been no one to comfort or talk to her that night. To explain or help her understand what happened and that none of it was her fault. She was ever on her own back then.

At those hurtful memories Ben's arms curled tighter around her, warding off the past, and then he tucked her head beneath his chin and just breathed her in. How would she ever get used to this? To having someone? How would he? "I wasn't the only young humanoid girl who had been attacked at that outpost, but I was desperate enough to go into his ship alone. He was a monster who had raped young girls before. He told me as much when he attacked me," she confided. "Anyway, I dragged his carcass off of the ship and left it to be eaten by the creatures of the desert. Then I seized his ship and sold it piece by piece," she recalled with a small smile that faded quickly. "He was the first person I ever killed."

Closing his eyes, drawing upon the Force, Ben heard the hoarse grunts of a young Rey dragging the large man down a rusted boarding ramp and off his ship with all her might after she killed him. How her right hand was soaked in blood and the messy red trail left behind her. She was a kriffing survivor if there ever were one! "He got what he deserved."

"And yet many other young girls who scavenged, begged, or stole at that Outpost weren't so lucky. Many resorted to selling their bodies to eat."

"You could never do that."

Her eyes narrowed sharply. "They were trying to survive hellish conditions all alone. They were vulnerable and desperate. I don't look down on them, Ben."

"Nor do I. But I know you."

He did indeed. A revelation in itself. "You're correct."

"I hate that you had to endure such cruelty."

"I endured no more or less than the others."

"Then we will do our best to try and make the galaxy a safer place for the innocent."

"A more worthwhile goal was never conceived." Rey nuzzled her face softly against his chest, reveling in his warm embrace. They were quiet for a time, each testing the waters of this new-found intimacy they shared. The last hours of this day have given life to a considerable, devastating storm of events that were neither safe nor predictable. And they were in the very eye of this dangerous storm.

"Tell me about the other two men," Ben asked at last, his voice low and husky over her ear.

Rey left hesitation behind in diving right in. "I lost my innocence to a boy named Kaile when I was seventeen years old." As the recollection of the young man with the sandy blonde hair and green eyes came back to her in flashes, she sought comfort in the strong arms consuming her very being. Ben cuddled her tighter and she wondered if either had ever felt closer to another person in all their life. She surmised that one of the bedrocks their Force-bond was built on was that both of them had felt immensely lonely for much of their youth. "We were friends in passing, sharing trader connections and warnings whenever Niima Outpost Militia came looking for Sand Rats. That's what they called the scavengers, beggars, and thieves who lived near the outpost."

"Continue."

"Kaile was squatting in the old clay hut of a kindly elderly man who had just died a month earlier. No one had come to collect the man's belongings, so Kaile shared them with me. Tooth brushes. A comb. Belts. Cooking pots. Empty water containers. Fire-starters. Soap. Basic needs mostly. And we had a roof over our heads for a short time. We were thankful for anything."

Ben listened to this extraordinary woman who had survived so much, and who he knew would accomplish great, great things in the future.

"For a desert world you would be appalled at how bitterly cold some Jakku nights were. So I stayed with Kaile for a week when things got really bad. We were all alone and barely scavenging enough items to feed ourselves. I was practically wearing rags for clothes. There was no hope or relief programs of any kind to help us. At least nothing long-term. We had a rigged generator that gave us lights and heat for barely five hours total per day."

Those cold nights came back to Rey as if they were yesterday. "One night I think we just needed companionship. Something more than the daily grind to get by and see another day. So we were lying in our sleeping rolls and then looked up at each other. Suddenly we started kissing. Or trying at least. It was nice." The tingle of jealousy she felt from Ben, he quickly killed it. "Neither of us knew what we were doing outside of talk we'd overheard and a couple of holo-movies we'd seen. Even then it wasn't anything graphic, but enough to give us some knowledge. So we had sex and it hurt like crazy," she half-laughed before the emotion tapered. "It was quick and easily forgettable. We were never together again after that one night. He was arrested the next day for stealing and I never saw him again."

"Thankfully you weren't with child."

"One of the few relief worker I ever ran into had given me vials of a three-year birth-control serum when they were handing out food one day. Like I told you, so many of the young girls were selling the only thing they felt they had of any value. I injected myself months before I met Kaile, so I was safe from that at least." She felt him nod quietly behind her, and then covered his arms with her own, the need to touch him growing stronger. "My second lover was just after I turned nineteen. His name was Syles. He was a tall, dark-haired speeder mechanic who would introduced me to people I could trade with. And he taught me how to repair starship engines and power conveyors whenever I brought him parts. That education was invaluable. I remember being attracted to his blue eyes and I knew he wanted me."

"I don't like him."

"This story doesn't take a romantic turn, trust me."

"That he touched you at all drives me crazy."

"And what will I think of your amorous past when I return the same query to you?" He stiffened against her that instant, and she knew it wasn't good. She figured she might as well finish her own story. "On one of the hottest days of the year his brother was killed in an illegal speeder-bike race and it crushed him. He sought me out the night it happened and I took him to a burned out freighter I was calling home. He didn't have anything but his brother and I was worried he might hurt himself. I shared what little food I had with him and just listened to him talk. Sleeping with him was never something I had planned. I think it happened because I wanted to comfort him. Just give him something to numb the pain until he could deal. Maybe I needed it too, I don't know. Anyway, it wasn't bad and didn't hurt nearly as much as my first time. We did some things I hadn't done before. It felt good to just touch another person and not feel so alone."

Ben's throat constricted when he asked, "Did you..."

"Climax? Yes. First time that wasn't my own doing," she noted playfully. And then she shivered when raw sexual desire fired through Ben as he imagined her touching herself in the dark, whimpering as her fingers stroked the glistening softness between her thighs. Of the quiet, feminine sounds she made when her fingers slipped inside of her. He was ravenous for a taste, which shocked her as she didn't know men did that. "So that's the sum total of my very limited sexual experience. Two men and two times."

Feeling so connected to her now, Ben sensed her fear over her inexperience. As badly as he'd like to bury his own past and never speak of it, he knew it was his turn. The details were ungentlemanly to say the least. But he knew it was only fair and expected of him that he be as honest as she was. "Do you want to know mine?"

Rey sat up a bit straighter. "I need to know. There's a difference."

"And that is?"

"We can't move forward if I don't know about the life you've led. Wanting you means I need to be able to take everything. It means I need to know everything."

Ben didn't yet possess the courage to ask what 'forward' even meant. "But at the same time you don't want to know?"

"The idea of someone touching you," Rey trailed off with no small amount of annoyance, and then exhaled deeply when a very unfamiliar wave of possessiveness swept over her as she had never felt possessive of someone before. Perhaps because she never truly had anyone before Ben. The definition of exactly how she 'had' him would be better served at a later date. "I don't need to tell you that it hurts. And I know how irrational that sounds. Everyone has a past. That's life. It's not like any of them matter right now. But I'm... this is all very new for me."

Shifting his attention, Ben stared out at the stars that stretched into oblivion. The processed air in the cockpit suddenly felt heavier. The words struggled to come forth. Her opinion of him mattered just that much. "I have not lived an honorable life, Rey."

Shame shifted through their Force-bond as he awaited her reply. Rey stilled herself for what was to come, all while not entirely sure what she was afraid to hear. "Give it to me, whatever it is."

Ben, ever lacking the ability to be subtle, chose to shove the sword all the way through. "I was far too shy and awkward during my days at Luke's Jedi Academy. There were three female students, but only one was humanoid and she, like many of them, were afraid of my abilities. Couple that with I never talked much and barely engaged them when we weren't training made for being left out of a lot of things they did as a group. I was also devoid of the charm my father was galactically known for. I enjoyed being alone as well as resented it."

Rey ached for the young man that felt so out of place in the world. A sentiment she knew all too well. "Did you have any interest in that one girl?"

"Not particularly," Ben admitted. "Her name was Zira. She had long straight hair the color of honey. She was bubbly and talkative. Always chirping about something. I was annoyed even when she said hi." Rey snickered in his arms and he was sure he would never tire of the sound. And now he had to end it. "I killed her."

Rey couldn't say that was unexpected. "When you turned?"

Ben nodded. "When I revolted against my Uncle I convinced six of his students to join me. I was able to promise them grand adventures, immense wealth, and galactic influence within the First Order. I promised them a true Master of the Force who would make them all-powerful if they would only give themselves to the Dark Side. I seduced them as I had been seduced. Together we killed the other twelve students and burned the Jedi Academy to the ground. And when we presented ourselves to Snoke he gave us our new names and appointed us the Knights of Ren. I was given command as their leader. That was the day Kylo Ren was born."

Such death and misery. Such loss. "Let it be known that today is the day he died."

"By your hands," he declared.

"By my hands," she repeated triumphantly. "Continue."

"Snoke allowed us to take whatever we wanted and satisfy any passions we desired. His need to kill any innocence within us began with our virginity. My first time was with a ship-stationed whore given to me whenever and however I wanted. She was older than me by ten seasons and I was with her many times before I was able to pick and choose from the pool that resided onboard Snoke's ship."

The stillness he perceived from Rey created a somber distance between them. Where her sexual experiences were born out of a need for companionship in the harsh reality of her life, his were selfishly focused on using women as tools for own his satisfaction. But what could he give her of value except the complete truth no matter how bad it was. "I never felt anything for those women outside of lust. I discarded them as if they were nothing. As I grew more powerful with the Dark Side that part of me became numb. Pleasure. Desire. Lust. They no longer held any allure for me. Snoke knew that would happen. The Dark Side of the Force became the only passion I needed to consume, and my thirst for it was unquenchable. To that end I haven't been with anyone for nearly three years. Honestly, I didn't feel much of anything before I met you. And then it became so much more than I had ever felt before."

"And yet a part of me feels lacking in the wake of your history with far more experienced, cultured lovers."

The warmth of his hand tenderly cupped her cheek as he drew her attention, begging that she feel what she alone was responsible for. "You have seized my every desire in a way the Dark Side utterly failed to accomplish. Those women, when I think of them now I feel sick over the life they had to lead and how uncaring I was. They never mattered to me. I never saw to their mutual pleasure. I never saw to their well-being. I satisfied myself and once that was done they knew to leave." And there it was. All of it. Every ugly bit. "I told you I had not lived an honorable life."

Shutting her eyes to concentrate, Rey synced with Ben through their Force-bond, curling her subconscious around all that he was. Though she hated to think of him with other women, what he told her wasn't exactly unexpected. She had felt enough to know he was older than her by possibly ten seasons, and it was highly unlikely a man as powerful and imposing as Kylo Ren hadn't taken lovers. But there was a part of her that worried he wouldn't be satisfied by her. That those cultured women, likely perfumed, charismatic, and experienced in the art of passion would make any experience with her vastly inadequate.

"No!" Ben gritted his teeth, this time burying his face in her soft brown hair, breathing her in. She submitted to his affection, leaning into him. "Surrendering to the ache I feel for you, I am powerless to resist."

Her heart skipped a beat as the feelings she owned within him assaulted her mind's eye with illicit images of all that he craved visiting upon her body. Of how incredibly captivating and desirable he found her. That her immense power thrilled him, minus any fear save her ever leaving his side.

A profound sense of peace swept over Ben as he relinquished the last of the Dark Side. "You are everything to me, Rey."

When her hazel gaze met his, hot and desperate in its intensity, Rey knew they were at the precipice. That there was no going back. It was time to take the greatest risk of her life and leap off the cliff into the great unknown. "Prove it."

Ben's mouth savagely covered hers with a growl, passionately capturing the sweet taste of her at last. Their first kiss possessed no familiar skill, lacking grace, but their undeniable hunger for each other set fire to everything between them. That intense, desperate hunger led to them attaining a natural rhythm as their mouths shifted and battled for dominance. That seductive rhythm evolved into their tongues brushing wetly, clashing as they kissed deeply.

Rey adjusted her position against him, deftly straddling him low on his lap. Strong hands suddenly gripped her slender hips, dragging her over the hard heat of his manhood, loving the way her thighs trembled in his grasp. Granting her the knowledge beyond a shadow of a doubt what she alone did to him. The all-encompassing power she wielded.

Husky, lustful smacking of mouths saw her grinding over his lap, her arms now curled round his neck. They kissed passionately for the longest time, sating both the curiosity and the urgency they shared. The Force vibrated around them, literally crackling with power at their union.

When finally their lips parted on a husky gasp, both panting wildly, the awareness that everything was about to change between them forever wasn't lost on either of them. Her heart racing, Rey lifted her hand, and for the very first time she tenderly traced the deep jagged scar she left on his face, noting its imperfection. The aura of danger it granted his unconventional, yet attractive features made him all the more enticing to her. Provocative. Rare.

"You marked me," Ben declared in a tone raw with yearning as the pressure of her weight on his lap spiraled his senses into madness. Holding her stare hostage, he admitted the only truth that mattered to him in life. "That means I'm yours."  
Simmering over his lap, Rey gazed deeply into his eyes, accepting the truth of his words. Her reply was born as barely above a whisper. "And yet I bear no mark as evidence of your ownership." When the last word fled her lips she felt him throb mightily beneath her, and through the Force he roared possessively. His hands clutched her hips tighter, but he made no effort to undress her. By her command alone would anything progress further. "Ben?"

"... please."

Spoken as desperate and as vulnerable as he'd said to her hours ago. Her mind set to purpose when her right hand reached for a small command panel beside his left arm. She held down an oval lever, reclining the pilot's chair as far back in the cockpit enclosure as it would go.

Captivated by her forwardness, Ben maneuvered, creating just that much more space for them. He watched her slide off his lap, and then heard twin clunks when she kicked off her boots. They had little room, but would make due as nothing that existed was going to stop this moment. And then she shoved her trousers and undergarments down to her ankles in one maneuver, kicking them off her feet. She was now naked from the waist down, exposed for his appraisal. Toned and petite, she possessed such immense strength and a natural sensuality he was devastated by her. "You are so beautiful," he proclaimed, feeling warm goosebumps fall over her through their bond. He licked his lips thirstily at the seductive sight of the soft light-brown curls at her apex. The wild thirst on the tip of his tongue to fuck her with it until she screamed. To drown in the taste of her. "That was efficient."

"Let's see if you can top it," she smirked, and then settled back on her knees between his spread legs. A dirty little fantasy projected from him that she gave a little shy shake of her head. "I've never done that before."

"Another time."

"Only if you remain in the Light."

"This is not the time to tease me, woman." Her snicker was music to his ears. Ben undid a buckle at his waist, and then rose ever so to drag his dark pants down to his ankles. The warm leather wasn't unpleasant as he settled back. But Rey's expression upon seeing him for the first time was blinding in its intensity. A devil of a grin played at the corner of his mouth when he felt her tiny spark of apprehension at his size. All of him jutted from his lap, and he felt her intriguing study of him. So long and thick, all for her. That he was quite a bit more man than her previous lovers pleased him to no end. "Is there anything that I could possibly say that wouldn't come off as smug?"

"No, there is not." Rey felt empowered by the erotic scenes playing out in the deep recesses of his mind. All of which starred her as the main attraction. On his throne. In his bed. Up against a wall. From behind. His head between her thighs, sucking on her until her legs shook and she cried out his name. Defying a moment's hesitation, she closed the short distance between them, climbing back into his lap, straddling him so low that the slick seam of her slit rocked over the hard length of him. A heartbeat later she captured his mouth with a searing kiss, nipping at his plump bottom lip with her teeth as she began a slow glide back and forth over his cock, but never took him inside. Denied him until he groaned with frustration, his fingers digging into her hips in silent protest.

Rey kissed Ben like she wanted to destroy everything he coveted and replace it only with her.

Never had she been so bold or confident with a lover. Her limited experience aside, never had she access to this ethereal bond that consumed her very being, syncing it perfectly with another. As natural as breathing, she knew what he wanted and way he needed it. What made him throb, what made her so wet for him. What aroused and what teased and what he craved. Instinctively understood his lust and feelings for her. As her slender hips rolled along his bare length, she reveled in the way his hands stilled her hips, evidence that she could conquer him with just that alone. That part of her wanted too. That feeling him spurt hotly all over her would drive her crazy with lust. Her core clenched with anticipation. "When?"

"Now!" he groaned as his tongue slipped past her lips, tangling with her own as she rose onto her knees. With but a slight tip of her hips the sensitive head of his cock pressed to her glistening entrance, and then she sank down oh so slowly - only halfway - her lips parted, trembling as she took more of him. He felt indescribable as he filled her, the sudden adrenalin rush of pleasure was intoxicating. The grimace of ecstasy he wore was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. That she could bring a man to such a state of awe. As she took more of him, the duality of hearing him softly moan her name in her head and in real-life was stunning. The thickness of his cock delivered the promised rapture she had fantasized about, her inner muscles spreading juicy heat around him, drawing tightly as she finally - finally possessed all of him inside her. "Ben..."

"Only you deserve worship," Ben exalted hotly over the side of her neck before sucking hard, grazing her tanned complexion with his teeth as she shivered. The wild, shameless blush she wore destroyed any restraint he had left. Her tight, slick core rippled around him as she rose slowly to the tip, only to sink him back inside of her all the way until she was fully seated - bathing his cock in her wetness. She made a tiny sound between a gasp and a moan when she squeezed tightly around him. He cursed a Huttese swear at the immeasurable pleasure of feeling her seated on his lap, his cock buried deep inside her as they set a harmonious rhythm. The lovely arch of her neck bared before him, her eyes shut, her face a mask of passionate concentration - he ached for her to be naked in his arms, and for them to have all the space to tangle and fight their way to ebullience. But here and now, this was perfect. "Tell me all that I must do to keep you forever?"

"Follow," Rey rose on her knees until the tip was barely inside, and then sank down, taking him deep, whimpering at the sensual fullness she felt. "Your," again she pulsed hotly around him, loving the visceral tension of having him so deep, "Heart."

Dying at the sight of the pleasurable winces that swept over her lovely face, Ben tightened his hold around her waist, and then weaved a hand into her hair and pulled her to his hungry mouth, kissing her hard. Their tongues thrust in and out, mimicking their lower bodies, utterly lost in each other. She rode him at such a tortuously slow pace - up and down - devastating his heart with the sweet, sweet heat of her cunt. Soon his mouth fastened onto her neck while her fingers tunneled through his dark hair, scraping over his scalp as her hips swiveled. "But you are my heart."

"Exactly." Rey fixed her hazel eyes upon him, focusing her hips on circling his lap, her fingernails now combing into the darkness of his silky hair. Easing him in and out of her warmth, it had been a long time since these muscles were utilized and she knew she would be sore later, but didn't give a damn at all. She felt so full of him it didn't matter that they were in a cramped space, or that her knees hurt, or the state her lower back would be in the morning.

When she kissed him again, her tongue slipped past his lips, seeking his own. This man ignited a desperate fire within her that she didn't think she was capable of. Didn't know existed. How could anything feel this good, being so in tune with another person? She rode him greedily and possessively, finding that perfect angle as his hands filled with the supple cheeks of her ass, guiding her every descent as they kissed. The cockpit was filled with husky moans, harsh breathing, and the filthy slap of flesh as they fucked. She bucked her hips against him, shaking with lust in his arms. He sucked on her tongue until she felt the sharp edge of his teeth. Until she was so wet the noise of their passion was shocking.

Rey couldn't stop fucking Ben. Had never wanted to be filled so badly before, lost in his arms, over his lap, as she rocked onto him. Impaled herself time and time again seeking her glorious climax. Had never wanted to own another person the way she wanted to own Ben Solo. He was hers, period. And anyone or anything standing in the way of that would die!

"Rey, you feel so good," he kissed her deeply. "Never let you go!"

"Oh Ben, fuck... don't stop," she half-begged, taking him so deep she saw stars behind her eyes. Had never felt so full before. So wet.

Ben swore her name as if she were all that he would ever worship. Rough, possessive hands caressed her body as she thrust over his lap. The pilot's chair squeaked loudly, while the cockpits glass hub began to fog as their passion was unleashed. The noise around them reduced to unintelligible grunts and moans as they were lost in each other.

Linked through the Force and undeniably the most powerful emotion of all, they moved as one being. Found a perfect rhythm. That perfect angle. Rey's hips began a slow erotic grind over his lap as he counter-thrust, surging deep inside her. When she bit her lip he swore loudly, his hands now roaming her toned thighs, her hips, overjoyed that she was his to caress. Her breath tickled his ear and his every nerve was infused with heat. The tiny cries and grunts coming from the depths of her throat were the sexiest things he ever heard. The sultry sweaty scent of them left him light-headed with lust. But nothing at all - ever - compared to the wincing, erotic expressions she wore as she rode his cock. The lewd, obscene sounds she made as she fucked him - as she fucked him until she began shivering mightily, amplifying her arousal to new heights. Her breath hitched, eyes squeezed shut, straining for her sweet end. He felt the primal sensations rise within her through their bond, edging toward the point of no return.

One last time the warm crest of his cock sank into her so Kriffing deep she cried wordlessly out, bucking in his arms, her inner muscles gripping the life from him. Rey came fully sheathed on his cock, grinding hot pressure over her clit, straining in his warm embrace. Soaked his shaft in her release, stroking the back of his head as his mouth ate at her neck, sucking over her pulse. Her face contorted wildly, white teeth bared as the sensations roared through her.

Ben didn't gift her an orgasm, he captured it. Drove into her with hard impacting thrusts that only amplified and prolonged her shattering climax. Her arms clutched tightly around his neck, clinging to him, panting hotly as she was fucked hard.

Rey heard him swearing 'Mine' over and over through their bond when she came, her pleasure entrusted only to him now. She pressed soft little kisses along his hairline, and down over the scar on his face, "I want it all, Ben. Every Kriffing drop. You are mine!"

Pleasurable, anguished sobs escaped him as she began riding him aggressively. Rising high, then sinking down hard, grinding. He cupped her supple little ass, grunting madly as her cunt sucked around him. Her mouth smothered his as she rode him out of his mind. With one final down-thrust she ate his animalistic guttural cry, felt him thicken ever so deep inside her. Drawing tightly around him, her inner muscles milking his length, the urgent slapping sounds of flesh rocked through the cockpit as she drained him of every last drop of his spurting hot seed as he filled her, groaning out her name endlessly. The tireless siege of her hips, impaling herself until he had nothing left to give her, shaking powerfully through his release until at last he stilled. Strong hands gripped her hips in sweet submission. Boneless and empty, yet filled with more love than he had ever felt before.

Sucking in air as the heat of the cabin they generated was stifling, Rey gazed into Ben's dark eyes, spent but still joined. He was as much as mess as she was, both broken and yet whole in a way neither had ever felt before. There was a joy settling within him that had begun the long process of healing, and she was the reason why. The road ahead for him was going to be monumentally difficult now that he turned from the Dark Side. But he would not face any of it alone. Through the Force and her own iron will she would see the First Order fall, the Republic restored, and the Jedi reborn. And at the end of all of that, she would have Ben. Rey wouldn't settle for less. "Is there anything that I could possibly say that wouldn't come out smug?"

"You have every Kriffing right in the universe to be smug," Ben declared while grinning. His head fell back lazily, his body delirious from pleasure. His hands rose to frame her beautiful face, feeling a sense of peace he wasn't aware even existed. Though he knew he didn't deserve to feel happy, the sensation was there nonetheless "You are truly exquisite."

Rey playfully arched a brow. "But how do I compare to the women in your past?"

"What women?"

Her glorious smile was blinding. "Good answer." And then she was kissing him again, softer, reveling in the consummation of their bond.

* * *

 **Planet Scipio Chief headquarters of the Intergalactic Banking Clan**

 **Early morning hours Located in the Outer Rim Territories**

The arduous journey on the long road to atonement has begun.

Corkscrewing his gloved hand outward, Ben manipulated the Force to remove the last of several thick transparisteel brackets off the back outer hull of his Tie Silencer to reach his target. They descended to the icy ground in a neat stack, followed by a silver valve that had frosted over. Dangerously freezing temperatures bit at his face, but he was fashioned by Snoke to ignore discomfort of any kind. To compartmentalize pain, locking it away from whatever else he needed to focus on. And that was probably the one and only thing he was grateful for from his former Master.

Bent down on one knee in hard snow-covered dirt, Ben pocketed a dozen Titan-plated bearings Rey might need later on. Inside the open outer shell of the fighter, just below a secondary engine exhaust he found what he was looking for. Oval in shape, the device was about as big as a astro-mechs head-dome. It was glossy matte black in color, smooth all over, with a circle of red lining its exterior. The ultra-advanced Guidance Module was the best tracking device the First Order ever put into use. Three years and over as many millions of credits in research and at last it was in the final production phase. Ben had personally requested one as he possessed a new tech addiction, but thus far it had only been housed in Mandator IV-class warships. The newest Tie Fighters coming down the First Order starship design pipeline would all have them within two seasons.

For now though the device could be of immense value to the Resistance. Ben had disabled it enroute to Scipio hours ago, ensuring no First Order presence could track his fighter. But as all of the Guidance Modules were synced on a heavily encrypted Ion sub-space network, its ability to make its location known to any cruiser in the First Order fleet also included the ability to know where those ships were as well. One could track a vessel on Coruscant from the fringe of the Outer Rim Territories, pin-pointing its location to within twenty kilometers. It was a monumental asset to be certain. If the Resistance could find a way to reverse engineer this Ben knew they would have an invaluable tool at their disposal. Especially if he did his job in ensuring that the First Order never learned the Resistance was in possession of the device, or that the movement still existed at all.

Having it delivered to the Resistance - to his mother, might be another small token of trust that he was sincere about working with them until the First Order was no more. Caring once more that they believed him was an unwelcome sentiment, but turning his back on Kylo Ren and the Dark Side meant accepting the role trust played in personal accountability. He needed the Resistance to supply him with a steady stream of undercover operatives as he and Rey restructured the First Order from within. Furthering their ultimate goal to see it wither away to nothingness.

They would wage a silent war to end all wars.

Ignoring the cold, Ben deftly disconnected two thin power cables and an internal energy node from within the device via the Force, and then stood to his full considerable height. Frigid winds tousled his dark hair as he peered out over the majestic ice-covered mountain range that stretched as far as the eye could see. Soft blue skies capped with rolling clouds reminded him of Hoth and the two-day trip Luke took him on when he was twelve, not long after he truly began training at the new Jedi Academy.

Painful memories assaulted his thoughts, but now came with a tremendous sense of guilt as Luke had been granting him a history lesson of survival and of his parents adventures. But he'd felt angry the entire time they were there, wanting for the lush waterfalls of the Solo family retreat on Naboo and his Mother's favor - yet the brutal cold of Hoth felt like a punishment for even existing when Han and Leia had more important things to do than be bothered with than a needy, awkward pre-teen.

Especially one so powerful with the Force he could barely control it. Power that scared the legendary Jedi Master Luke Skywalker.

In hindsight, Ben knew had he paid attention and absorbed the tales of the Rebels courage and sacrifice, how different could his point of view have evolved. Han was the best father he knew how to be, especially considering he'd grown up without one himself. Life was a card game to the legendary smuggler, but he loved his son deeply, and Ben knew that. Probably was why he had missed his father so much every time he left. Was why he so violently resented that accursed starship of his.

Rey saw the Millennium Falcon as this great beacon of hope in the galaxy - the mythical starship that made the Kessel Run in twelve parsecs, led countless dangerous missions for the underdog Rebellion, even invading the interior of the second Darth Star and saw to its destruction. But most importantly delivered her from the misery of Jakku.

Such grace was lost on Ben whenever he thought of the Falcon. He saw that ship as the means a father escaped the responsibility of a difficult son. The mere sight of it disgusted him. He wasn't sure that would ever change.

A quiet sadness fell over Ben as he considered the path he could have taken differently. The things he should have said when he felt as if the walls were closing in around him. That his resentment of Luke prevented him from ever becoming truly close to him. The mentor his Uncle might of become could have steered him in a different direction, perhaps. That Han and Leia were far from perfect and had made many mistakes, but were not bad parents. They were flawed and overwhelmed by his growing power. They likely did the best they could, all while dealing with a new Republic held together by masking tape, early stirrings of the First Order's rise, and a marriage disintegrating no matter how deeply they loved each other.

Ben understood now that none of that gave him the right to engage Snoke the way he did simply because he was given the attention he so desperately craved. He'd made so many terrible, naive mistakes. Had committed unforgivable sins in the name of what he felt was an unfair life visited upon him by uncaring parents and a jealous, lying Uncle. As if he'd ever gone even one night without a hot meal or a loved one nearby. Had ever known what it was like to not have a home or be unprotected from those who would do him harm.

Rey had survived a truly unfair, cruel childhood on Jakku. Ben simply lost his way and compounded each mistake with a worse one until he abandoned every single thing of value Rey lived without her entire life.

The emotional disease that ate at him from the inside was born when he murdered his Han. Killed his own father in cold blood, certain that single act would free him from the call of the Light - and yet damned him to it forever.

Ben's thoughts soon turned to his mother, whom he missed more than he could ever convey - that admission alone tore his soul to shreds. There was no trace of the Dark Side within him anymore to bury his emotions in. No way to numb the pain with the empty promise of more power. Always more power.

Such a fool he'd been.

However did the Force bring Rey into his life when he was so unworthy of her? Why did their bond not end when Snoke was killed, but had only grown stronger? More profound? Ben didn't not know the answer to that question, nor did he care. That she was with him was enough. All else would be revealed in the fullness of time.

Erasing thoughts of his family for the time being, Ben reached out through the Force for the presence of anyone near their hidden landing zone. They had decided against docking at the Main Vault Fortress settlement port, choosing a dense forest region thirty kilometers due east. Utilizing his starship's highly advanced cloaking device, their presence went undetected despite the best radar arrays money could buy via the Intergalactic Banking Clan. Yet another tool he would make available to the Resistance as it began its evolution.

Two standard hours ago Rey began the long trek alone towards the Intergalactic Banking Clan's main headquarters, a massive floating spire in the mountains, while Ben stayed behind to ready the ship for a quick departure. Housed in a embedded compartment beneath the Tie Silencer, a heavily-modified speeder bike gave her the means to traverse this frozen land and set about the business of the Resistance.

With the sweet taste of her still raging through his senses, Ben longed for her presence. His heavy dark cape billowed in the blustering cold winds as he considered their imminent separation. His heart sank at having to say goodbye to Rey, even as it was part of the plan all along. After last night's passion there was no thought in his mind she did not dominate. No action he would set to purpose that didn't have her in mind. No future he wanted that didn't now include her. And though their separation wouldn't be forever, only added to the hurt he was attempting to silence. The peace he'd felt while making love to her was the most intoxicating emotion he'd ever experienced in his entire life.

Ben wasn't sure who Ben Solo truly was, but he prayed he was the man reflected in Rey's hazel eyes. That was a man she had faith in. Believed in. Had risked her life for. Being worthy of her meant everything to him.

Suddenly, he sensed her approaching. Just before she left they had argued vehemently while discussing his plan, with her altering it because she did not agree with all of it. Ultimately they found a common ground, but were tense when she left. Though their feelings for each other were so much stronger now than before, they were still true to who they were.

Ben operated with a cold, deadly efficiency, ever focused on the future - on the next step, ready to slay any obstacle that stood in his way because to look back would slay him. Rey thoughtfully considered the here and now, mindful of those she cared for and how her actions would affect them. She finally knew her place in all of this, and the immense power to shape events to come that rested in her hands. Responsibility was the base of her character. She did not fear the past the way he did. She embraced using it to create a better future. Deceit and dishonesty had never touched her.

They were forever the perfect opposite the other needed.

Enjoying a quiet moment as a magnificent flock of red Hysen birds flew overhead like a squadron of fighters, Ben trudged through the heavy snow crunching beneath his boots to a side compartment on the fighter. Quickly stashing the Guidance Module inside, he closed the hatch. Rey's Force aura was growing stronger. She was nearly here, her thoughts cautious yet jubilant that everything went well. She had access to the thirty million credits and was already thinking about how she would broach their plan and the news of his turn to the Resistance. She worried how his Mother, Luke, and Finn would take the news. Especially Leia and Luke. How she could get them to understand what she was so sure of - mercy did her faith in him devastate his heart.

Ben pondered if he would see his Mother again someday? How would she look at him now? Could he stand before her at all? Could his heart take the unpredictable emotion in her eyes? The fact that he killed his Father would forever stain any connection they shared. The consequence of his actions was likely her utter contempt for him. Yes, she would use him as Snoke did, for the success of the organization she controlled. But could she someday forgive him? Could he ever forgive himself?

Alas, the future was not written. He allowed his heart to hope. The Light granted him that, and he was ever grateful.

Through a thick cluster of towering trees came a wide spray of snow as a modified CK-6 swoop speeder-bike emerged at a high rate of speed, splintering dozens of frost-covered branches aside. He crossed his arms, noting the heavy black cloak she wore that she hadn't had when she left. Ever clever, his Rey. "I assume things went well?"

Bringing the open-air repulserlift vehicle to a dead stop a foot away from him, Rey climbed off the speeder-bike, her dark cloak flowing in the frigid breeze. No, she did not like the cold but it was different enough from the miserable heat and sand of Jakku that she didn't mind so much. "The account has been created and encrypted. I have full access to thirty million credits and anonymity when and where it is used. The Resistance can start to rebuild because of you." He gave a dismissive nod, unable to accept the compliment. "Thank you."

"It's the least I could do given all the misery I've caused."

"Every moment, every deed, every day better than the last. That's how this works."

Ben exhaled a gust of cool air that lifted before him, his eyes ever gazing into hers. "Where did such wisdom come from in one so young?"

"Because that's how I'm going to live my life as well," she said, taking in the striking site of him. The imposing figure he made to the galaxy versus the vulnerable complex man he was to her heart. "The past can drown you, but the future can be whatever you fight for. I want mine to be better than my past. It's that simple."

Erasing the short distance between them, Ben wore an expression just north of a smile. "Whatever will I do with you?"

Her mouth curved into a bright smile, teeth flashing white. "Shut up and kiss me."

Ben wasted no time, gathering her into his strong arms around her waist, lifting her off her feet, and then covered her softly parted lips with a long, lush kiss that left her light-headed. Her snow-covered boots now dangling off the cold ground as he held her tightly. When her arms crossed around his neck he felt her smiling before she seductively lapped at his lips until her tongue was granted entrance. She moaned of so softly when he began sucking hard on it until she was so aroused she wanted nothing more than for him to take her back inside his ship and take her all over again.

Her slender fingers combed through his silky dark hair, clawing lightly over his scalp as her tongue was suckled tenderly. Let the galaxy throw whatever it will at them, she knew they were strong enough to face it together. Her leg curled around one of his, drawing her closer to him as wintry air swirled around their kiss. Hot lust burned through their shared bond, growing in intensity, but would need to be tamed.

Ben brushed his lips back and forth over hers one last time, and then rested his forehead against hers. "I'll need to establish communications with the First Order soon."

Her eyes shut as reality cast aside the last of their intimate moment. There was a galaxy that wasn't going to save itself. "So do I with the Resistance. I'm sure they are gravely worried about me."

"I need time to gather and gauge the Knights of Ren," Ben explained while holding her, his eyes shut, forehead pressed to her own. "I need to assess which of the eight can be turned to our side, and those who will have to be dealt with. And I can't do that with you in my head. I need my thoughts to be clear."

Rey knew exactly what that meant, nor did Ben hide his deadly intentions through their bond. Ever so often she needed to remind herself the work ahead would not be pretty. "Having more Force-adepts on our side would be a great asset."

"And I will need time to assume the role of Supreme Leader before the First Order Hierarchy. I will need to make it official and grasp what it takes to command such a vast organization. To take command in such a way that they fear defying me. The First Order's rule is often based in fear, and so my rule requires it. "

Though deplorable in her estimation when anyone used fear to govern, Rey understood its advantages. She would have to navigate her way through the treacherous waters of such a politically charged world. "There is much we both have to learn." And then she felt it. The slightest tremor of uncertainty fell over him. Of hesitation where she was concerned. "What is it?"

"I've been thinking," Ben began, his face shrouded with a conflicted expression. "I have no doubt of your feelings for me, and the faith you have placed in me. But for you, even as powerful and capable as you are, to assume a commanding role in the First Order Hierarchy will be difficult and gift you with numerous new enemies who will seek to undermine and discredit your role. Even try to kill you."

Her gaze narrowed, her voice steady. "I expected no less. They do not know me, and most recently considered me an enemy of the First Order. I know what I'm walking into. My eyes are wide open. I will be ready."

"Yes, but you need someone you can trust."

"I trust you." The shy smile that danced lightly at his mouth warmed something inside of her. And then it was gone, and she swore that someday she'd help him not be so ashamed of feeling good.

"There is no greater meaning in my life than your trust, Rey. But you would do well to have someone else with you whom you trust without fail. Someone who would be a second set of eyes and ears as we take command. Someone you already know."

Puzzled, Rey wasn't sure where he was going with this.

"FN-2187."

"Finn?"

"Yes."

Rey barked a laugh that echoed around them. "To do what?"

"Return with you to the First Order and assume a command role within the military," Ben detailed. "I don't know Finn except that he hates me. I read that in your mind. I understand it. But I know you trust him and feel you can rely on him. That he is capable and brave. In addition, he is greatly familiar with the First Order as he was a child admission into the military - he knows how it operates and its expectations - he would be an invaluable asset to you and you would have someone with you who you could trust would never betray you."

There was insanity and then there was this. Nevertheless, she considered, "Asking Finn to leave the Resistance and return to the First Order is an impossible mission. He would never do it. He hates the First Order as much as I do. Maybe even more."

"And yet twenty-four standard hours ago you allowed yourself to be captured onboard Snoke's ship with only a sliver of hope that you could turn me from the Dark Side. I'd like to think impossible missions are what you excel at."

Compliment aside, Rey had to admit having Finn with her on this long-term mission would be amazing, and his knowledge of the First Order would no doubt help her understand how best to move in such an massive organization. She wouldn't be walking in completely blind, which would expedite her learning curve. But he absolutely deplored the First Order. Going back in undercover, how could she even broach the subject? "I make no promises."

"That is good enough."

"But I will admit it makes allot of sense."

Ben appreciated her regard of his plan. "Have you considered a role for yourself yet? I have some ideas..."

"General," she stated with no small amount of pride. And knew he understood thoughts of his mother played a hand in her decision. "I would like the title of General in the High Command. I would be on the same level as the other generals in rank, which would grant me a better vantage point to assess them rather than to immediately be placed above them and be resented. They will all dislike me enough as it is."

"They will know that we are together. I will not hide who you are to me. I will not be without you."

"And they will hate me all the more due to my access and favor with you. But I can handle that. I can weather that storm." And then she snickered, peeking down at her feet. "You are still holding me off of the ground. You do know that, right?" she teased.

"Right." Allowing her a slow seductive slide down his body until her feet hit the snow, Ben didn't try to mask the intense lust in his gaze as he stared down at her. "I hadn't realized until this very moment how short you are."

She glared up at him. "Your height annoys me."

"However will we make this work?"

"It'll be fun figuring that out." Rey rose on her tippy toes to kiss him deeply once more - likely for the last time for a long time. "Whatever will you do without me for the next forty days?"

"Be more miserable than I normally am. And rule the galaxy."

"You live a strange life, Ben Solo."

His true name spoken by her with such fondness was something he never wanted to take for granted. And when her gloved hand lifted a moment to trace the length of his scar, for some reason he found her touch incredibly intimate. "What is your plan with the Resistance?"

Back to business. Rey set her feet on solid ground. "I'm going to bring the Resistance to Ahch-To. We will regroup and plan while I continue my Jedi training with Master Skywalker. And we will see to it that any remaining Resistance fighters out there join us. And if I can convince Finn to join me on this insane mission, and that is a huge if, I will have him teach me everything he knows about the First Order. When you see me next I will be ready and prepared."

"And I will still be yours." Ben was overwhelmed with the joy he sensed from her. Rey tenderly caressed his face, and then he caught her wrist, turning her open palm to kiss the center of it, and then fold her hand into a fist. "I will introduce you as the former Jedi and ex-student of Luke Skywalker who has helped us destroy the last remnants of the Resistance and has earned your place among us. That to have such a powerful Force user in our ranks grows our strength in the galaxy."

"How will I return to you?"

"I'll re-establish the Force bond in thirty-nine days. Be ready to travel on the fortieth."

Though Rey could scarcely imagine not being able to feel him for forty days, the heartbreak of missing him already hurting her, she understood the deep focus both needed in their roles to come. "General Leia and Luke must die. And I need to be able to provide proof of their demise. That would spell the true death of the Resistance and it would justify my presence."

Rey was so Kriffing impressive to Ben. Her mind was razor sharp. She had a firm grasp on what they needed to accomplish. "I'll leave that in your very capable hands."

She continued, "I'm going to take a page from Snoke's playbook and ensure the new headquarters of the Resistance is onboard a cruiser. One that we design and modify to stay hidden. Something big enough to be able to train our operatives on."

"If FN-... if Finn joins you, it would be a good idea to have him train at least three others on how the First Order works from the inside. Especially anyone skilled in analytical or numerical directives."

"Why those expertise's?"

"First step in taking down any organization, go after the money. Target the money. The finances. What we generate, what we owe, what it costs to maintain, and who we control. I want Resistance-loyalists in those positions as they will be able to cover for us when our policy changes begin. We will need them ready to assess and report."

Every breath Rey took blew a puff of white vapor as they talked. Their plan had no expiration date nor guarantee of success. And the danger would be constant. "With you being so much younger than Snoke, I think you will be challenged far more than he ever was. I think you will have to watch your back until I'm there to do it," she grinned even as her words weren't the least bit teasing. "As I said before, there will come a day when those not attuned to the Force will want to be free of its power over them."

Her caring for him was the most foreign emotion, and yet the Light beckoned him to enjoy it. "I will be alive and well when you return to me."

"Separate quarters?"

"Never."

Her smirk was nearly evil. "Fully stocked refrigeration unit?"

"I do adore your priorities."

"As I adore you." They kissed lightly, finally, as this was goodbye. "If you let me off at the spaceport I can grab a transport from one of the cargo run dealers."

Releasing her from his arms, Ben backed away, and then made a show of motioning towards his fighter. "This is yours now."

"What?" Rey asked as she walked toward him.

"This fighter has some of the most advanced, cutting-edge technology in the galaxy. Enough parts to improve that hunk of junk you are so fond of. So I am giving it to you. Scrap it and turn the Falcon into what you imagine it should be."

The absolute flood of ideas ran through her mind as she imagined stripping this fighter bare, and all that she could scavenge. How the Falcon could be upgraded exponentially. "Thank you," she said in a quiet tone.

He exhaled deeply. "You're welcome, Rey."

They stood before each other and the sadness at their separation was all that the other could feel. The loneliness until they were reunited would have to be buried in the desperate, meaningful work that had to be done until then. And so to that end, Ben backed away towards the speeder bike while Rey climbed the cockpit ladder, and then pressed a lever that raised the hub. He watched her closely, committing every single thing she did to memory. The ache in his chest would only be filled when she was back in his arms. "I'll make communication with the First Order and have a cruiser here in a few hours' time. I'll make sure it appears my fighter crashed in the forest due to a unexpected malfunction of my navigation system. No wreckage will be needed."

"Or we could say Kriff it all and just retire rich to some backwoods planet and become Nerf-herders," Rey joked playfully from the pilot's chair.

Climbing aboard the speeder bike, Ben couldn't help a smile no matter the cold. "Just work on our farm all day?"

"Herding Nerf."

"I'd much rather retire to Naboo someday."

"The Lake Country looks majestic. Most beautiful place I have ever..."

When she trailed off, wearing a veiled expression ever so, Ben considered how she even knew that place existed. "Let me guess, another time?"

"May the Force be with you, Ben," Rey expressed, her eyes glistening, ignoring his query yet projecting her hearts message to him. That she missed him already.

"May the Force be with you, Rey." Ben watched the Tie Silencer's ruby cockpit hub slip shut and lock into place. The fighter's engines suddenly roared to life, and then it lifted and took off skyward, showering a glorious rain of snow all around him.

Ben watched her departure until the fighter faded away out of sight. Until she was truly gone. He was breathless, aching for her. "Forty days," he mouthed to himself bitterly, igniting the engine of the speeder bike.

"Do you fear the call to the Light, Ben?"

He did not need to peer over his shoulder to identify who spoke. The voice was known to him. "No Grandfather. I do not."

And with those parting words the speeder raced through the forest, zipping in and around massive broken trees, barreling across a frozen lake towards the spaceport that would take Kylo Ren back to the First Order. In Ben's mind it could have him.

Ben Solo belonged to Rey alone.

* * *

 **The End.**

 **"Razor Blades Edge" is the first in a series of connected stories. The next one in the series is titled "Forty Days." Thank you for reading :)**


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